Isolation and characterization of hrp1 +, a new member of the SNF2/SWI2 gene family from the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe

1998 ◽  
Vol 257 (3) ◽  
pp. 319-329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. H. Jin ◽  
E. J. Yoo ◽  
Y. K. Jang ◽  
S. H. Kim ◽  
M. J. Kim ◽  
...  
1994 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 3895-3905
Author(s):  
S Kjaerulff ◽  
J Davey ◽  
O Nielsen

We previously identified two genes, mfm1 and mfm2, with the potential to encode the M-factor mating pheromone of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe (J. Davey, EMBO J. 11:951-960, 1992), but further analysis revealed that a mutant strain lacking both genes still produced active M-factor. Here we describe the isolation and characterization of a third M-factor gene, mfm3. A mutant lacking all three genes fails to produce M-factor, indicating that all functional M-factor genes now have been identified. The triple mutant exhibits an absolute mating defect in M cells, a defect that is not rescued by addition of exogenous M-factor. A mutational analysis reveals that all three mfm genes contribute to the production of M-factor. Their transcription is limited to M cells and requires the mat1-Mc and ste11 gene products. Each gene is induced when the cells are starved of nitrogen and further induced by a pheromone signal. Additionally, the signal transduction machinery associated with the pheromone response is required for transcription of the mfm genes in both stimulated and unstimulated cells.


1994 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 3895-3905 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Kjaerulff ◽  
J Davey ◽  
O Nielsen

We previously identified two genes, mfm1 and mfm2, with the potential to encode the M-factor mating pheromone of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe (J. Davey, EMBO J. 11:951-960, 1992), but further analysis revealed that a mutant strain lacking both genes still produced active M-factor. Here we describe the isolation and characterization of a third M-factor gene, mfm3. A mutant lacking all three genes fails to produce M-factor, indicating that all functional M-factor genes now have been identified. The triple mutant exhibits an absolute mating defect in M cells, a defect that is not rescued by addition of exogenous M-factor. A mutational analysis reveals that all three mfm genes contribute to the production of M-factor. Their transcription is limited to M cells and requires the mat1-Mc and ste11 gene products. Each gene is induced when the cells are starved of nitrogen and further induced by a pheromone signal. Additionally, the signal transduction machinery associated with the pheromone response is required for transcription of the mfm genes in both stimulated and unstimulated cells.


1998 ◽  
Vol 143 (2) ◽  
pp. 415-427 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janos Demeter ◽  
Shelley Sazer

Cytokinesis is the part of the cell cycle in which the cell is cleaved to form two daughter cells. The unicellular yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe is an excellent model organism in which to study cell division, since it shows the general features of eukaryotic cell division and is amenable to genetic analysis. In this manuscript we describe the isolation and characterization of a new protein, imp2, which is required for normal septation in fission yeast. imp2, which colocalizes with the medial ring during septation, is structurally similar to a group of proteins including the S. pombe cdc15 and the mouse PSTPIP that are localized to, and thought to be involved in actin ring organization. Cells in which the imp2 gene is deleted or overexpressed have septation and cell separation defects. An analysis of the actin cytoskeleton shows the lack of a medial ring in septating cells that overexpress imp2, and the appearance of abnormal medial ring structures in septated cells that lack imp2. These observations suggest that imp2 destabilizes the medial ring during septation. imp2 also shows genetic interactions with several, previously characterized septation genes, strengthening the conclusion that it plays a role in normal fission yeast septation.


1998 ◽  
Vol 334 (2) ◽  
pp. 377-386 ◽  
Author(s):  
Changwoo LEE ◽  
Yeon-Soo SEO

We report here the isolation and characterization of a novel DNA helicase from extracts of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. The enzyme, called DNA helicase II, also contains an intrinsic DNA-dependent ATPase activity. Both the helicase and ATPase activities co-purified with a 63 kDa polypeptide on an SDS/polyacrylamide gel. The protein has a sedimentation coefficient of 4.8 S and a Stokes radius of 36 Å (3.6 nm); from these data the native molecular mass was calculated to be 65 kDa. The enzyme translocates in a 5´-to-3´ direction with respect to the substrate strand to which it is bound. Unwinding reactions carried out in the presence of increasing enzyme showed a sigmoidal curve, suggesting either co-operative interactions between monomers or multimerization of DNA helicase II in the presence of single-stranded DNA and/or ATP. This enzyme favoured adenosine nucleotides (ATP and dATP) as its energy source, but utilized to limited extents GTP, CTP, dGTP and dCTP. Non-hydrolysable ATP analogues did not support helicase activity. Kinetic analyses showed that the unwinding reaction was rapid, being complete after 50–100 s of incubation. Addition of unlabelled substrates to the helicase reaction after preincubation of the enzyme with substrate did not significantly diminish unwinding. The ATPase activity of DNA helicase II increased proportionally with increasing lengths of single-stranded DNA cofactor. In the presence of circular DNA, ATP hydrolysis continued to increase up to the longest time tested (3 h), whereas it ceased to increase after 5–10 min in the presence of shorter oligonucleotides. The initial rate of ATP hydrolysis during the first 5 min of incubation time was not affected by DNA species used. These data indicate that the enzyme does not dissociate from the single-stranded DNA once it is bound and is therefore highly processive.


Genetics ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 142 (3) ◽  
pp. 1021-1031 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianping Hu ◽  
Beth Anderson ◽  
Susan R Wessler

Abstract R and B genes and their homologues encode basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcriptional activators that regulate the anthocyanin biosynthetic pathway in flowering plants. In maize, R/B genes comprise a very small gene family whose organization reflects the unique evolutionary history and genome architecture of maize. To know whether the organization of the R gene family could provide information about the origins of the distantly related grass rice, we characterized members of the R gene family from rice Oryza sativa. Despite being a true diploid, O. sativa has at least two R genes. An active homologue (Ra) with extensive homology with other R genes is located at a position on chromosome 4 previously shown to be in synteny with regions of maize chromosomes 2 and 10 that contain the B and R loci, respectively. A second rice R gene (Rb) of undetermined function was identified on chromosome 1 and found to be present only in rice species with AA genomes. All non-AA species have but one R gene that is Ra-like. These data suggest that the common ancestor shared by maize and rice had a single R gene and that the small R gene families of grasses have arisen recently and independently.


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