The largest E1A isoform of human adenovirus (Ad) includes a C-4 zinc finger domain within conserved region 3 (CR3) that is largely responsible for activating transcription of the early viral genes. CR3 interacts with multiple cellular factors, but its mechanism of action is modeled primarily on the basis of the mechanism for the prototype E1A protein of human Ad type 5. We expanded this model to include a representative member from each of the six human Ad subgroups. All CR3 domains tested were capable of transactivation. However, there were dramatic differences in their levels of transcriptional activation. Despite these functional variations, the interactions of these representative CR3s with known cellular transcriptional regulators revealed only modest differences. Four common cellular targets of all representative CR3s were identified: the proteasome component human Sug1 (hSug1)/S8, the acetyltransferases p300/CREB binding protein (CBP), the mediator component mediator complex subunit 23 (MED23) protein, and TATA binding protein (TBP). The first three factors appear to be critical for CR3 function. RNA interference against human TBP showed no significant reduction in transactivation by any CR3 tested. These results indicate that the cellular factors previously shown to be important for transactivation by Ad5 CR3 are similarly bound by the E1A proteins of other types. This was confirmed experimentally using a transcriptional squelching assay, which demonstrated that the CR3 regions of each Ad type could compete with Ad5 CR3 for limiting factors. Interestingly, a mutant of Ad5 CR3 (V147L) was capable of squelching wild-type Ad5 CR3, despite its failure to bind TBP, MED23, p300/CBPassociated factor (pCAF), or p300/CBP, suggestive of the possibility that an additional as yet unidentified cellular factor is required for transactivation by E1A CR3.The adenovirus (Ad) E1A oncoprotein is the first gene expressed upon infection and performs two essential roles in order to initiate the viral replication cycle. E1A uncouples the cell cycle control program of the host cell, driving it into S phase to provide an optimal cellular environment for viral replication. This function can be carried out by the smaller major E1A isoform (243 residues in Ad type 5 [Ad5] E1A) (11,25). The other function of E1A is to activate transcription of the early viral promoters and is predominantly mediated by the largest E1A isoform (4,18,23,24). The largest E1A isoform, coding for 289 residues in Ad5 E1A, differs from the smaller isoform only by a unique 46-amino-acid C-4 zinc finger domain within conserved region 3 (CR3), which is essential for viral transactivation (4, 18). Single point mutations in CR3 were originally isolated as Ad mutants with a host range limited to HEK 293 cells, which supply wild-type (wt) E1A in trans. These "host range" mutations render E1A unable to transactivate viral promoters, thus preventing virus growth in cells at a low multiplicity of infection (MOI), unless wt E1A is supplied in trans (13,16).Transactiva...