Glucocorticoid regulation of mouse mammary tumor virus: identification of a short essential DNA region

Transcription of mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) DNA is stimulated by steroid hormones. To determine the DNA sequences involved in this regulation, we constructed a plasmid containing the MMTV long terminal repeat (LTR) in front of the coding region of the herpes simplex thymidine kinase gene, from which the promoter had been removed. Portions of the LTR were removed by the nuclease Ba/31, and the deleted molecules were recloned and tested for transcriptional activity in transfections of Ltk‐aprt‐ cells. Stably transfected cell clones were selected and hormone‐dependent transcription from the MMTV promoter was studied by the S1 nuclease mapping method. The results show that DNA sequences between ‐105 and ‐204 base pairs upstream from the initiation site of viral transcription are required for glucocorticoid stimulation.