AN AMINO-TERMINAL FRAGMENT OF SV40 T-ANTIGEN INDUCES CELLULAR DNA-SYNTHESIS IN QUIESCENT RAT-CELLS

SV40 large T antigen can stimulate cellular DNA synthesis in quiescent cells. Here we report that an SV40 mutant, which expresses only the amino-terminal 147 amino acids of this protein and which does not make small t antigen, stimulates cellular DNA synthesis in quiescent rat cells at levers similar to those achieved with serum stimulation. Thus, the amino-terminal 147 amino acids of large T antigen define a domain of this protein that is sufficient for efficient stimulation of cellular DNA synthesis in the absence of small t antigen. (C) 1994 academic Press, Inc.