scholarly journals Organelle-cytoskeletal interactions: actin mutations inhibit meiosis-dependent mitochondrial rearrangement in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

1995 ◽  
Vol 6 (10) ◽  
pp. 1381-1396 ◽  
Author(s):  
M G Smith ◽  
V R Simon ◽  
H O'Sullivan ◽  
L A Pon

During early stages of meiosis I, yeast mitochondria fuse to form a single continuous thread. Thereafter, portions of the mitochondrial thread are equally distributed to daughter cells. Using time-lapse fluorescence microscopy and a membrane potential sensing dye, mitochondria are resolved as small particles at the cell periphery in pre-meiotic, living yeast. These organelles display low levels of movement. During meiosis I, we observed a threefold increase in mitochondrial motility. Mitochondrial movements were linear, occurred at a maximum velocity of 25 +/- 6.7 nm/s, and resulted in organelle collision and fusion to form elongated tubular structures. Mitochondria do not co-localize with microtubules. Destabilization of microtubules by nocodazole treatment has no significant effect on the rate and extent of thread formation. In contrast, yeast bearing temperature-sensitive mutations in the actin-encoding ACT1 gene (act1-3 and act1-133) exhibit abnormal mitochondrial aggregation, fragmentation, and enlargement as well as loss of mitochondrial motility. In act1-3 cells, mitochondrial defects and actin delocalization occur only at restrictive temperatures. The act1-133 mutation, which perturbs the myosin-binding site of actin without significantly affecting actin cytoskeletal structure in meiotic yeast, results in mitochondrial morphology and motility defects at restrictive and permissive temperatures. These studies support a role for the actin cytoskeleton in the control of mitochondrial position and movements in meiotic yeast.

1994 ◽  
Vol 126 (6) ◽  
pp. 1375-1391 ◽  
Author(s):  
S M Burgess ◽  
M Delannoy ◽  
R E Jensen

In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, mitochondria are elongated organelles which form a reticulum around the cell periphery. To determine the mechanism by which mitochondrial shape is established and maintained, we screened yeast mutants for those defective in mitochondrial morphology. One of these mutants, mmm1, is temperature-sensitive for the external shape of its mitochondria. At the restrictive temperature, elongated mitochondria appear to quickly collapse into large, spherical organelles. Upon return to the permissive temperature, wild-type mitochondrial structure is restored. The morphology of other cellular organelles is not affected in mmm1 mutants, and mmm1 does not disrupt normal actin or tubulin organization. Cells disrupted in the MMM1 gene are inviable when grown on nonfermentable carbon sources and show abnormal mitochondrial morphology at all temperatures. The lethality of mmm1 mutants appears to result from the inability to segregate the aberrant-shaped mitochondria into daughter cells. Mitochondrial structure is therefore important for normal cell function. Mmm1p is located in the mitochondrial outer membrane, with a large carboxyl-terminal domain facing the cytosol. We propose that Mmm1p maintains mitochondria in an elongated shape by attaching the mitochondrion to an external framework, such as the cytoskeleton.


2008 ◽  
Vol 182 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stéphane Chiron ◽  
Alyona Bobkova ◽  
Haowen Zhou ◽  
Michael P. Yaffe

Movement of mitochondria in Schizosaccharomyces pombe depends on their association with the dynamic, or plus ends, of microtubules, yet the molecular basis for this interaction is poorly understood. We identified mmd4 in a screen of temperature-sensitive S. pombe strains for aberrant mitochondrial morphology and distribution. Cells with the mmd4 mutation display mitochondrial aggregation near the cell ends at elevated temperatures, a phenotype similar to mitochondrial defects observed in wild-type cells after microtubule depolymerization. However, microtubule morphology and function appear normal in the mmd4 mutant. The mmd4 lesion maps to peg1+, which encodes a microtubule-associated protein with homology to cytoplasmic linker protein–associated proteins (mammalian microtubule plus end–binding proteins). Peg1p localizes to the plus end of microtubules and to mitochondria and is recovered with mitochondria during subcellular fractionation. This mitochondrial-associated fraction of Peg1p displays properties of a peripherally associated protein. Peg1p is the first identified microtubule plus end–binding protein required for mitochondrial distribution and likely functions as a molecular link between mitochondria and microtubules.


2004 ◽  
Vol 15 (9) ◽  
pp. 3994-4002 ◽  
Author(s):  
Istvan R. Boldogh ◽  
Sharmilee L. Ramcharan ◽  
Hyeong-Cheol Yang ◽  
Liza A. Pon

Two actin-dependent force generators contribute to mitochondrial inheritance: Arp2/3 complex and the myosin V Myo2p (together with its Rab-like binding partner Ypt11p). We found that deletion of YPT11, reduction of the length of the Myo2p lever arm (myo2-Δ6IQ), or deletion of MYO4 (the other yeast myosin V), had no effect on mitochondrial morphology, colocalization of mitochondria with actin cables, or the velocity of bud-directed mitochondrial movement. In contrast, retention of mitochondria in the bud was compromised in YPT11 and MYO2 mutants. Retention of mitochondria in the bud tip of wild-type cells results in a 60% decrease in mitochondrial movement in buds compared with mother cells. In ypt11Δ mutants, however, the level of mitochondrial motility in buds was similar to that observed in mother cells. Moreover, the myo2-66 mutant, which carries a temperature-sensitive mutation in the Myo2p motor domain, exhibited a 55% decrease in accumulation of mitochondria in the bud tip, and an increase in accumulation of mitochondria at the retention site in the mother cell after shift to restrictive temperatures. Finally, destabilization of actin cables and the resulting delocalization of Myo2p from the bud tip had no significant effect on the accumulation of mitochondria in the bud tip.


2002 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 4429-4442 ◽  
Author(s):  
Verena Tatzer ◽  
Günther Zellnig ◽  
Sepp D. Kohlwein ◽  
Roger Schneiter

The degree of acyl chain desaturation of membrane lipids is a critical determinant of membrane fluidity. Temperature-sensitive mutants of the single essential acyl chain desaturase, Ole1p, of yeast have previously been isolated in screens for mitochondrial inheritance mutants ( Stewart, L.C., and Yaffe, M.P. (1991). J. Cell Biol.115, 1249–1257 ). We now report that the mutant desaturase relocalizes from its uniform ER distribution to a more punctuate localization at the cell periphery upon inactivation of the enzyme. This relocalization takes place within minutes at nonpermissive conditions, a time scale at which mitochondrial morphology and inheritance is not yet affected. Relocalization of the desaturase is fully reversible and does not affect the steady state localization of other ER resident proteins or the kinetic and fidelity of the secretory pathway, indicating a high degree of selectivity for the desaturase. Relocalization of the desaturase is energy independent but is lipid dependent because it is rescued by supplementation with unsaturated fatty acids. Relocalization of the desaturase is also observed in cells treated with inhibitors of the enzyme, indicating that it is independent of temperature-induced alterations of the enzyme. In the absence of desaturase function, lipid synthesis continues, resulting in the generation of lipids with saturated acyl chains. A model is discussed in which the accumulation of saturated lipids in a microdomain around the desaturase could induce the observed segregation and relocalization of the enzyme.


Genetics ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 162 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chi-Yung Lai ◽  
Ewa Jaruga ◽  
Corina Borghouts ◽  
S Michal Jazwinski

Abstract The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae reproduces by asymmetric cell division, or budding. In each cell division, the daughter cell is usually smaller and younger than the mother cell, as defined by the number of divisions it can potentially complete before it dies. Although individual yeast cells have a limited life span, this age asymmetry between mother and daughter ensures that the yeast strain remains immortal. To understand the mechanisms underlying age asymmetry, we have isolated temperature-sensitive mutants that have limited growth capacity. One of these clonal-senescence mutants was in ATP2, the gene encoding the β-subunit of mitochondrial F1, F0-ATPase. A point mutation in this gene caused a valine-to-isoleucine substitution at the ninetieth amino acid of the mature polypeptide. This mutation did not affect the growth rate on a nonfermentable carbon source. Life-span determinations following temperature shift-down showed that the clonal-senescence phenotype results from a loss of age asymmetry at 36°, such that daughters are born old. It was characterized by a loss of mitochondrial membrane potential followed by the lack of proper segregation of active mitochondria to daughter cells. This was associated with a change in mitochondrial morphology and distribution in the mother cell and ultimately resulted in the generation of cells totally lacking mitochondria. The results indicate that segregation of active mitochondria to daughter cells is important for maintenance of age asymmetry and raise the possibility that mitochondrial dysfunction may be a normal cause of aging. The finding that dysfunctional mitochondria accumulated in yeasts as they aged and the propensity for old mother cells to produce daughters depleted of active mitochondria lend support to this notion. We propose, more generally, that age asymmetry depends on partition of active and undamaged cellular components to the progeny and that this “filter” breaks down with age.


Genetics ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 123 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
E J Louis ◽  
J E Haber

Abstract The presence of the tRNA ochre suppressors SUP11 and SUP5 is found to induce meiosis I nondisjunction in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The induction increases with increasing dosage of the suppressor and decreases in the presence of an antisuppressor. The effect is independent of the chromosomal location of SUP11. Each of five different chromosomes monitored exhibited nondisjunction at frequencies of 0.1%-1.1% of random spores, which is a 16-160-fold increase over wild-type levels. Increased nondisjunction is reflected by a marked increase in tetrads with two and zero viable spores. In the case of chromosome III, for which a 50-cM map interval was monitored, the resulting disomes are all in the parental nonrecombinant configuration. Recombination along chromosome III appears normal both in meioses that have no nondisjunction and in meioses for which there was nondisjunction of another chromosome. We propose that a proportion of one or more proteins involved in chromosome pairing, recombination or segregation are aberrant due to translational read-through of the normal ochre stop codon. Hygromycin B, an antibiotic that can suppress nonsense mutations via translational read-through, also induces nonrecombinant meiosis I nondisjunction. Increases in mistranslation, therefore, increase the production of aneuploids during meiosis. There was no observable effect of SUP11 on mitotic chromosome nondisjunction; however some disomes caused SUP11 ade2-ochre strains to appear white or red, instead of pink.


Genetics ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 162 (3) ◽  
pp. 1147-1156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodor Hanekamp ◽  
Mary K Thorsness ◽  
Indrani Rebbapragada ◽  
Elizabeth M Fisher ◽  
Corrine Seebart ◽  
...  

Abstract In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, certain mutant alleles of YME4, YME6, and MDM10 cause an increased rate of mitochondrial DNA migration to the nucleus, carbon-source-dependent alterations in mitochondrial morphology, and increased rates of mitochondrial DNA loss. While single mutants grow on media requiring mitochondrial respiration, any pairwise combination of these mutations causes a respiratory-deficient phenotype. This double-mutant phenotype allowed cloning of YME6, which is identical to MMM1 and encodes an outer mitochondrial membrane protein essential for maintaining normal mitochondrial morphology. Yeast strains bearing null mutations of MMM1 have altered mitochondrial morphology and a slow growth rate on all carbon sources and quantitatively lack mitochondrial DNA. Extragenic suppressors of MMM1 deletion mutants partially restore mitochondrial morphology to the wild-type state and have a corresponding increase in growth rate and mitochondrial DNA stability. A dominant suppressor also suppresses the phenotypes caused by a point mutation in MMM1, as well as by specific mutations in YME4 and MDM10.


Genetics ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 151 (2) ◽  
pp. 511-519 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert J Kokoska ◽  
Lela Stefanovic ◽  
Andrew B Buermeyer ◽  
R Michael Liskay ◽  
Thomas D Petes

AbstractThe POL30 gene of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), a protein required for processive DNA synthesis by DNA polymerase δ and ϵ. We examined the effects of the pol30-52 mutation on the stability of microsatellite (1- to 8-bp repeat units) and minisatellite (20-bp repeat units) DNA sequences. It had previously been shown that this mutation destabilizes dinucleotide repeats 150-fold and that this effect is primarily due to defects in DNA mismatch repair. From our analysis of the effects of pol30-52 on classes of repetitive DNA with longer repeat unit lengths, we conclude that this mutation may also elevate the rate of DNA polymerase slippage. The effect of pol30-52 on tracts of repetitive DNA with large repeat unit lengths was similar, but not identical, to that observed previously for pol3-t, a temperature-sensitive mutation affecting DNA polymerase δ. Strains with both pol30-52 and pol3-t mutations grew extremely slowly and had minisatellite mutation rates considerably greater than those observed in either single mutant strain.


Genetics ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 159 (2) ◽  
pp. 453-470
Author(s):  
Sue Biggins ◽  
Needhi Bhalla ◽  
Amy Chang ◽  
Dana L Smith ◽  
Andrew W Murray

Abstract Accurate chromosome segregation requires the precise coordination of events during the cell cycle. Replicated sister chromatids are held together while they are properly attached to and aligned by the mitotic spindle at metaphase. At anaphase, the links between sisters must be promptly dissolved to allow the mitotic spindle to rapidly separate them to opposite poles. To isolate genes involved in chromosome behavior during mitosis, we microscopically screened a temperature-sensitive collection of budding yeast mutants that contain a GFP-marked chromosome. Nine LOC (loss of cohesion) complementation groups that do not segregate sister chromatids at anaphase were identified. We cloned the corresponding genes and performed secondary tests to determine their function in chromosome behavior. We determined that three LOC genes, PDS1, ESP1, and YCS4, are required for sister chromatid separation and three other LOC genes, CSE4, IPL1, and SMT3, are required for chromosome segregation. We isolated alleles of two genes involved in splicing, PRP16 and PRP19, which impair α-tubulin synthesis thus preventing spindle assembly, as well as an allele of CDC7 that is defective in DNA replication. We also report an initial characterization of phenotypes associated with the SMT3/SUMO gene and the isolation of WSS1, a high-copy smt3 suppressor.


1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 2154-2164 ◽  
Author(s):  
D J DeMarini ◽  
M Winey ◽  
D Ursic ◽  
F Webb ◽  
M R Culbertson

The SEN1 gene, which is essential for growth in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, is required for endonucleolytic cleavage of introns from all 10 families of precursor tRNAs. A mutation in SEN1 conferring temperature-sensitive lethality also causes in vivo accumulation of pre-tRNAs and a deficiency of in vitro endonuclease activity. Biochemical evidence suggests that the gene product may be one of several components of a nuclear-localized splicing complex. We have cloned the SEN1 gene and characterized the SEN1 mRNA, the SEN1 gene product, the temperature-sensitive sen1-1 mutation, and three SEN1 null alleles. The SEN1 gene corresponds to a 6,336-bp open reading frame coding for a 2,112-amino-acid protein (molecular mass, 239 kDa). Using antisera directed against the C-terminal end of SEN1, we detect a protein corresponding to the predicted molecular weight of SEN1. The SEN1 protein contains a leucine zipper motif, consensus elements for nucleoside triphosphate binding, and a potential nuclear localization signal sequence. The carboxy-terminal 1,214 amino acids of the SEN1 protein are essential for growth, whereas the amino-terminal 898 amino acids are dispensable. A sequence of approximately 500 amino acids located in the essential region of SEN1 has significant similarity to the yeast UPF1 gene product, which is involved in mRNA turnover, and the mouse Mov-10 gene product, whose function is unknown. The mutation that creates the temperature-sensitive sen1-1 allele is located within this 500-amino-acid region, and it causes a substitution for an amino acid that is conserved in all three proteins.


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