HPV-16 E7 and adenovirus E1a complex formation with TATA box binding protein is enhanced by casein kinase II phosphorylation.

The major transforming protein of HPV-16 is encoded by the E7 gene. This has been shown to cooperate with EJ-ras in the immortalisation of primary rodent cells and with the viral E6 gene in the immortalisation of primary human keratinocytes. HPV-16 E7 protein has been shown to bind to a number of cellular proteins involved in the control of cell growth; including pRB, p107 and cyclin A. Loss of pRb or p107 binding results in the loss of transforming activity. In this paper we demonstrate that HPV-16 E7 can also complex with the core component of TFIID, the TATA Box Binding Protein (TBP). This interaction is partly dependent upon phosphorylation of the E7 protein by cellular casein kinase II (CKII), since phosphorylation of E7 by CKII increases the affinity with which E7 binds TBP. Similar results are also obtained with the Adenovirus Ela protein, indicating a conservation of function between these two viral oncoproteins. Mutation of the CKII site to two acidic amino acids significantly increases the affinity of E7 for TBP, indicating that the incorporation of two negative charges at this region of E7 is important in regulating the interaction with TBP.