Cell cycle effects of microinjected antisense oligodeoxynucleotides to p34cdc2 kinase

In this study the effect of antisense oligomers targeted against the mRNA transcripts of p34cdc2 kinase on G1 progression into S-phase was examined. For this purpose, antisense, sense, or nonsense oligomers were introduced directly into the cytoplasm of T98G cells grown in monolayer cultures by glass-capillary microinjection. The microinjection of antisense oligomers (but not sense or nonsense oligomers) into growth-arrested cells before serum stimulation inhibited G1 progression into S-phase. This inhibition was correlated with a reduction in the steady-state levels of nuclear p34cdc2 protein. Microinjection of antisense oligomers into cells at 2 and 6 hours after serum stimulation also resulted in a marked inhibition in the ability of cells to enter S-phase. The inhibitory effect decreased when cells were microinjected at 12 hours after serum stimulation. When cells were microinjected at 18 and 24 hours after serum stimulation, only a slight inhibition was observed. As the antisense oligomers were introduced directly into the cytoplasm of cells at each of the time points examined, the observed differences in the inhibitory effects of the antisense oligomers at later times after serum stimulation cannot be explained by differences in uptake. An alternative explanation is that after a certain threshold level of nuclear p34cdc2 protein is reached in late G1 phase; no further increase is necessary, because the cells become committed to enter S-phase. In yeast, p34cdc2 appears to play an important role in the G1/S-phase transition at a control point in late G1 phase called START (reviewed by Lewin). In mammalian cells a control point that could be equivalent to START is the "restriction point" which is defined as the time after which inhibition of protein synthesis fails to block entry into S-phase (reviewed by Pardee). The effects observed with antisense oligomers to p34cdc2 kinase are strikingly similar to what is observed when low concentrations of the drug cycloheximide are added to these cells at different times after serum stimulation; entry into S-phase is significantly inhibited when cycloheximide is added up to 12 hours postimulation. Thus, the results reported in this study are in agreement with the idea that p34cdc2 kinase plays a role in the G1/S phase transition in mammalian cells. Finally, introduction of antisense oligomers directly into the cytoplasm of cells grown in monolayer cultures by glass-capillary microinjection appears to be a viable alternative to simply adding the oligomers to the culture medium.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)