A possible mechanism by which SV40 T-antigen stimulates rRNA synthesis

Abstract

Binding of SV40 T-antigen to RNA polymerase I could account for the observation that T-antigen stimulates rRNA synthesis and that nucleoli do not stain for T-antigen. Two tests were performed to detect binding: a) RNA polymerase I was isolated and assayed in the presence of T-antigen; polymerase activity was enhanced. b) RNA polymerase I and T-antigen were mixed and then T-antigen complement fixation assays performed; complement fixation was not inhibited.