Dimerization of the human papillomavirus E7 oncoprotein in vivo.

We have used a yeast two-hybrid system to show that human papillomavirus E7 proteins can form oligomeric complexes in vivo. The carboxyl-terminal cysteine-rich metal-binding domain is critical for this activity although amino-terminal sequences also contribute to oligomerization. Our experiments also reveal that E7 possesses an intrinsic transcription activation activity in yeast, which resides in the amino terminus of the protein.