scholarly journals Evidence that the MIF2 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes a centromere protein with homology to the mammalian centromere protein CENP-C.

1995 ◽  
Vol 6 (7) ◽  
pp. 793-807 ◽  
Author(s):  
P B Meluh ◽  
D Koshland

The MIF2 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been implicated in mitosis. Here we provide genetic evidence that MIF2 encodes a centromere protein. Specifically, we found that mutations in MIF2 stabilize dicentric minichromosomes and confer high instability (i.e., a synthetic acentric phenotype) to chromosomes that bear a cis-acting mutation in element I of the yeast centromeric DNA (CDEI). Similarly, we observed synthetic phenotypes between mutations in MIF2 and trans-acting mutations in three known yeast centromere protein genes-CEP1/CBF1/CPF1, NDC10/CBF2, and CEP3/CBF3B. In addition, the mif2 temperature-sensitive phenotype can be partially rescued by increased dosage of CEP1. Synthetic lethal interactions between a cep1 null mutation and mutations in either NDC10 or CEP3 were also detected. Taken together, these data suggest that the Mif2 protein interacts with Cep1p at the centromere and that the yeast centromere indeed exists as a higher order protein-DNA complex. The Mif2 and Cep1 proteins contain motifs of known transcription factors, suggesting that assembly of the yeast centromere is analogous to that of eukaryotic enhancers and origins of replication. We also show that the predicted Mif2 protein shares two short regions of homology with the mammalian centromere Ag CENP-C and that two temperature-sensitive mutations in MIF2 lie within these regions. These results provide evidence for structural conservation between yeast and mammalian centromeres.

2003 ◽  
Vol 14 (12) ◽  
pp. 4931-4946 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladimir S. Nekrasov ◽  
Melanie A. Smith ◽  
Sew Peak-Chew ◽  
John V. Kilmartin

We have purified two new complexes from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, one containing the centromere component Mtw1p together with Nnf1p, Nsl1p, and Dsn1p, which we call the Mtw1p complex, and the other containing Spc105p and Ydr532p, which we call the Spc105p complex. Further purifications using Dsn1p tagged with protein A show, in addition to the other components of the Mtw1p complex, the two components of the Spc105p complex and the four components of the previously described Ndc80p complex, suggesting that all three complexes are closely associated. Fluorescence microscopy and immunoelectron microscopy show that Nnf1p, Nsl1p, Dsn1p, Spc105p, and Ydr532p all localize to the nuclear side of the spindle pole body and along short spindles. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays show that all five proteins are associated with centromere DNA. Homologues of Nsl1p and Spc105p in Schizosaccharomyces pombe also localize to the centromere. Temperature-sensitive mutations of Nsl1p, Dsn1p, and Spc105p all cause defects in chromosome segregation. Synthetic-lethal interactions are found between temperature-sensitive mutations in proteins from all three complexes, in agreement with their close physical association. These results show an increasingly complex structure for the S. cerevisiae centromere and a probable conservation of structure between parts of the centromeres of S. cerevisiae and S. pombe.


Genetics ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 135 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
M D Welch ◽  
D B Vinh ◽  
H H Okamura ◽  
D G Drubin

Abstract Null mutations in SAC6 and ABP1, genes that encode actin-binding proteins, failed to complement the temperature-sensitive phenotype caused by a mutation in the ACT1 gene. To identify novel genes whose protein products interact with actin, mutations that fail to complement act1-1 or act1-4, two temperature-sensitive alleles of ACT1, were isolated. A total of 14 extragenic noncomplementing mutations and 12 new alleles of ACT1 were identified in two independent screens. The 14 extragenic noncomplementing mutations represent alleles of at least four different genes, ANC1, ANC2, ANC3 and ANC4 (Actin NonComplementing). Mutations in the ANC1 gene were shown to cause osmosensitivity and defects in actin organization; phenotypes that are similar to those caused by act1 mutations. We conclude that the ANC1 gene product plays an important role in actin cytoskeletal function. The 12 new alleles of ACT1 will be useful for further elucidation of the functions of actin in yeast.


1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1879-1892 ◽  
Author(s):  
J L Davis ◽  
R Kunisawa ◽  
J Thorner

Exposure of a haploid yeast cell to mating pheromone induces transcription of a set of genes. Induction is mediated through a cis-acting DNA sequence found upstream of all pheromone-responsive genes. Although the STE12 gene product binds specifically to this sequence element and is required for maximum levels of both basal and induced transcription, not all pheromone-responsive genes are regulated in an identical manner. To investigate whether additional factors may play a role in transcription of these genes, a genetic screen was used to identify mutants able to express pheromone-responsive genes constitutively in the absence of Ste12. In this way, we identified a recessive, single gene mutation (mot1, for modifier of transcription) which increases the basal level of expression of several, but not all, pheromone-responsive genes. The mot1-1 allele also relaxes the requirement for at least one other class of upstream activating sequence and enhances the expression of another gene not previously thought to be involved in the mating pathway. Cells carrying mot1-1 grow slowly at 30 degrees C and are inviable at 38 degrees C. The MOT1 gene was cloned by complementation of this temperature-sensitive lethality. Construction of a null allele confirmed that MOT1 is an essential gene. MOT1 residues on chromosome XVI and encodes a large protein of 1,867 amino acids which contains all seven of the conserved domains found in known and putative helicases. The product of MOT1 is strikingly homologous to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae SNF2/SW12 and RAD54 gene products over the entire helicase region.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y Nogi ◽  
R Yano ◽  
J Dodd ◽  
C Carles ◽  
M Nomura

We have previously isolated mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae that are primarily defective in transcription of 35S rRNA genes by RNA polymerase I and have identified genes (RRN1 to RRN9) involved in this process. We have now cloned the RRN4 gene by complementation of the temperature-sensitive phenotype of the rrn4-1 mutant and have determined its complete nucleotide sequence. The following results demonstrate that the RRN4 gene encodes the A12.2 subunit of RNA polymerase I. First, RRN4 protein expressed in Escherichia coli reacted with a specific antiserum against A12.2. Second, amino acid sequences of three tryptic peptides obtained from A12.2 were determined, and these sequences are found in the deduced amino acid sequence of the RRN4 protein. The amino acid sequence of the RRN4 protein (A12.2) is similar to that of the RPB9 (B12.6) subunit of yeast RNA polymerase II; the similarity includes the presence of two putative zinc-binding domains. Thus, A12.2 is a homolog of B12.6. We propose to rename the RRN4 gene RPA12. Deletion of RPA12 produces cells that are heat but not cold sensitive for growth. We have found that in such null mutants growing at permissive temperatures, the cellular concentration of A190, the largest subunit of RNA polymerase I, is lower than in the wild type. In addition, the temperature-sensitive phenotype of the rpa12 null mutants can be partially suppressed by RPA190 (the gene for A190) on multicopy plasmids. These results suggest that A12.2 plays a role in the assembly of A190 into a stable polymerase I structure.


1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (12) ◽  
pp. 8016-8027 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takeshi Fujiwara ◽  
Kazuma Tanaka ◽  
Eiji Inoue ◽  
Mitsuhiro Kikyo ◽  
Yoshimi Takai

ABSTRACT The RHO1 gene encodes a yeast homolog of the mammalian RhoA protein. Rho1p is localized to the growth sites and is required for bud formation. We have recently shown that Bni1p is one of the potential downstream target molecules of Rho1p. The BNI1gene is implicated in cytokinesis and the establishment of cell polarity in Saccharomyces cerevisiae but is not essential for cell viability. In this study, we screened for mutations that were synthetically lethal in combination with a bni1 mutation and isolated two genes. They were the previously identifiedPAC1 and NIP100 genes, both of which are implicated in nuclear migration in S. cerevisiae. Pac1p is a homolog of human LIS1, which is required for brain development, whereas Nip100p is a homolog of rat p150Glued, a component of the dynein-activated dynactin complex. Disruption ofBNI1 in either the pac1 or nip100mutant resulted in an enhanced defect in nuclear migration, leading to the formation of binucleate mother cells. The arp1 bni1mutant showed a synthetic lethal phenotype while the cin8 bni1 mutant did not, suggesting that Bni1p functions in a kinesin pathway but not in the dynein pathway. Cells of the pac1 bni1 and nip100 bni1 mutants exhibited a random distribution of cortical actin patches. Cells of the pac1 act1-4 mutant showed temperature-sensitive growth and a nuclear migration defect. These results indicate that Bni1p regulates microtubule-dependent nuclear migration through the actin cytoskeleton. Bni1p lacking the Rho-binding region did not suppress the pac1 bni1 growth defect, suggesting a requirement for the Rho1p-Bni1p interaction in microtubule function.


1997 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 647-662 ◽  
Author(s):  
F P Finger ◽  
P Novick

Two new temperature-sensitive alleles of SEC3, 1 of 10 late-acting SEC genes required for targeting or fusion of post-Golgi secretory vesicles to the plasma membrane in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, were isolated in a screen for temperature-sensitive secretory mutants that are synthetically lethal with sec4-8. The new sec3 alleles affect early as well as late stages of secretion. Cloning and sequencing of the SEC3 gene revealed that it is identical to profilin synthetic lethal 1 (PSL1). The SEC3 gene is not essential because cells depleted of Sec3p are viable although slow growing and temperature sensitive. All of the sec3 alleles genetically interact with a profilin mutation, pfy1-111. The SEC3 gene in high copy suppresses pfy1-111 and sec5-24 and causes synthetic growth defects with ypt1, sec8-9, sec10-2, and sec15-1. Actin structure is only perturbed in conditions of chronic loss of Sec3p function, implying that Sec3p does not directly regulate actin. All alleles of sec3 cause bud site selection defects in homozygous diploids, as do sec4-8 and sec9-4. This suggests that SEC gene products are involved in determining the bud site and is consistent with a role for Sec3p in determining the correct site of exocytosis.


1999 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 3317-3329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dong-Wook Kim ◽  
Michael Sacher ◽  
Al Scarpa ◽  
Anne Marie Quinn ◽  
Susan Ferro-Novick

A temperature-sensitive mutant, sec34-2, is defective in the late stages of endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-to-Golgi transport. A high-copy suppressor screen that uses thesec34-2 mutant has resulted in the identification of theSEC34 structural gene and a novel gene calledGRP1. GRP1 encodes a previously unidentified hydrophilic yeast protein related to the mammalian Golgi protein golgin-160. Although GRP1 is not essential for growth, the grp1Δ mutation displays synthetic lethal interactions with several mutations that result in ER accumulation and a block in the late stages of ER-to-Golgi transport, but not with those that block the budding of vesicles from the ER. Our findings suggest that Grp1p may facilitate membrane traffic indirectly, possibly by maintaining Golgi function. In an effort to identify genes whose products physically interact with Sec34p, we also tested the ability of overexpressed SEC34 to suppress known secretory mutations that block vesicular traffic between the ER and the Golgi. This screen revealed that SEC34 specifically suppressessec35-1. SEC34 encodes a hydrophilic protein of ∼100 kDa. Like Sec35p, which has been implicated in the tethering of ER-derived vesicles to the Golgi, Sec34p is predominantly soluble. Sec34p and Sec35p stably associate with each other to form a multiprotein complex of ∼480 kDa. These data indicate that Sec34p acts in conjunction with Sec35p to mediate a common step in vesicular traffic.


1996 ◽  
Vol 132 (5) ◽  
pp. 755-767 ◽  
Author(s):  
S K Sapperstein ◽  
V V Lupashin ◽  
H D Schmitt ◽  
M G Waters

Uso1p, a Saccharomyces cerevisiae protein required for ER to Golgi transport, is homologous to the mammalian intra-Golgi transport factor p115. We have used genetic and biochemical approaches to examine the function of Uso1p. The temperature-sensitive phenotype of the uso1-1 mutant can be suppressed by overexpression of each of the known ER to Golgi v-SNAREs (Bet1p, Bos1p, Sec22p, and Ykt6p). Overexpression of two of them, BET1p and Sec22p, can also suppress the lethality of delta uso1, indicating that the SNAREs function downstream of Uso1p. In addition, overexpression of the small GTP-binding protein Ypt1p, or of a gain if function mutant (SLY1-20) of the t-SNARE associated protein Sly1p, also confers temperature resistance. Uso1p and Ypt1p appear to function in the same process because they have a similar set of genetic interactions with the v-SNARE genes, they exhibit a synthetic lethal interaction, and they are able to suppress temperature sensitive mutants of one another when overexpressed. Uso1p acts upstream of, or in conjunction with, Ypt1p because overexpression of Ypt1p allows a delta uso1 strain to grow, whereas overexpression of Uso1p does not suppress a delta ypt1 strain. Finally, biochemical analysis indicates that Uso1p, like Ypt1p, is required for assembly of the v-SNARE/t-SNARE complex. The implications of these findings, with respect to the mechanism of vesicle docking, are discussed.


1983 ◽  
Vol 96 (6) ◽  
pp. 1592-1600 ◽  
Author(s):  
T R Manney ◽  
P Jackson ◽  
J Meade

Two mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae have been isolated from normal haploid MAT alpha strains and characterized as having temperature-sensitive, pleiotropic phenotypes for functions associated with mating. At the permissive temperature, 23 degrees C, they were found to behave as normal MAT alpha haploids with respect to mating efficiency, sporulation in diploids formed with MAT a strains, secretion of alpha-factor, and failure to secrete the MATa-specific products, a-factor and Barrier. At higher temperatures they were found to decline in mating and sporulation efficiency and to express the a-specific functions. Genetic analysis established that one of these mutants, PE34, carries a temperature-sensitive allele of the MAT alpha 2 gene and that the other, PD7, carries a temperature-sensitive allele of the TUP1 gene.


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