Expression of human papillomavirus 16 E2 protein in Schizosaccharomyces pombe delays the initiation of mitosis

Infection by some types of human papillomavirus (HPV) is associated with th e development of cervical cancer. Analysis of viral DNA from cervical tumou rs shows that the E2 gene is frequently disrupted during integration into t he host cell's DNA, It has therefore been suggested that loss of E2p is an important step in malignant transformation. Expression of E2p in the fissio n yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe retards the G2-M transition, by delaying activation of Cdc2p kinase, In contrast, S phase progression, and commitmen t to cell division in late G1 are not affected. The delay is independent of the transcriptional trans-activation function of E2p, and does not result from E2p DNA binding mimicking DNA damage. Increased expression of E2p also delays mitotic initiation in mammalian cells, S, pombe may thus provide a simple model for the analysis of E2p function.