The C-terminal domain of transcription factor IIIA interacts differently with different 5S RNA genes

DNase I footprints and affinity measurements showed that the C-terminal arm of Xenopus transcription factor IIIA interacts differently with different Xenopus 5S DNAs, forming three distinct types of transcription factor IIIA-5S DNA complexes: a somatic type, a major-oocyte (and pseudogene) type, and a trace-oocyte type. Site-directed mutagenesis on the major-oocyte 5S gene revealed that somatic-type changes at positions 53, 55, and 56 changed the structure of the transcription factor IIIA-5S DNA complex from major-oocyte to somatic, and a single trace-oocyte change at position 56 caused the change from major-oocyte to trace-oocyte complex. We further show that the somatic-type changes are accompanied by a marked enhancement in the rate of 5S RNA transcription, and we discuss the possible biological relevance of these findings.