Mutations in sfdA and sfdB Suppress Multiple Developmental Mutations in Aspergillus nidulans

Genetics ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 160 (1) ◽  
pp. 159-168
Author(s):  
Ellen M Kellner ◽  
Thomas H Adams
Keyword(s):  
Aspergillus Nidulans ◽  
Null Allele ◽  
Hyphal Growth ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Regulatory Pathway ◽  
Submerged Cultures ◽  
Developmental Defects ◽  
Suppressor Mutations ◽  
Its Gene

Abstract Conidiophore morphogenesis in Aspergillus nidulans occurs in response to developmental signals that result in the activation of brlA, a well-characterized gene that encodes a transcription factor that is central to asexual development. Loss-of-function mutations in flbD and other fluffy loci have previously been shown to result in delayed development and reduced expression of brlA. flbD message is detectable during both hyphal growth and conidiation, and its gene product is similar to the Myb family of transcription factors. To further understand the regulatory pathway to brlA activation and conidiation, we isolated suppressor mutations that rescued development in strains with a flbD null allele. We describe here two new loci, designated sfdA and sfdB for suppressors of flbD, that bypass the requirement of flbD for development. sfd mutant alleles were found to restore developmental timing and brlA expression to strains with flbD deletions. In addition, sfd mutations suppress the developmental defects in strains harboring loss-of-function mutations in fluG, flbA, flbB, flbC, and flbE. All alleles of sfdA and sfdB that we have isolated are recessive to their wild-type alleles in diploids. Strains with mutant sfd alleles in otherwise developmentally wild-type backgrounds have reduced growth phenotypes and develop conidiophores in submerged cultures.

scholarly journals Suppressor Mutations Bypass the Requirement of fluG for Asexual Sporulation and Sterigmatocystin Production in Aspergillus nidulans

Genetics ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 165 (3) ◽  
pp. 1083-1093
Author(s):  
Jeong-Ah Seo ◽  
Yajun Guan ◽  
Jae-Hyuk Yu
Keyword(s):  
Aspergillus Nidulans ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Dominant Negative ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Dominant Mutation ◽  
Site Mutation ◽  
Asexual Sporulation ◽  
Dominant Negative Mutation ◽  
Suppressor Mutations ◽  
Early Developmental

Abstract Asexual sporulation (conidiation) in the filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans requires the early developmental activator fluG. Loss of fluG results in the blockage of both conidiation and production of the mycotoxin sterigmatocystin (ST). To investigate molecular mechanisms of fluG-dependent developmental activation, 40 suppressors of fluG (SFGs) that conidiate without fluG have been isolated and characterized. Genetic analyses showed that an individual suppression is caused by a single second-site mutation, and that all sfg mutations but one are recessive. Pairwise meiotic crosses grouped mutations to four loci, 31 of them to sfgA, 6 of them to sfgB, and 1 each to sfgC and sfgD, respectively. The only dominant mutation, sfgA38, also mapped to the sfgA locus, suggesting a dominant negative mutation. Thirteen sfgA and 1 sfgC mutants elaborated conidiophores in liquid submerged culture, indicating that loss of either of these gene functions not only bypasses fluG function but also results in hyperactive conidiation. While sfg mutants show varying levels of restored conidiation, all recovered the ability to produce ST at near wild-type levels. The fact that at least four loci are defined by recessive sfg mutations indicates that multiple genes negatively regulate conidiation downstream of fluG and that the activity of fluG is required to remove such repressive effects.

Characterization of the Role of the FluG Protein in Asexual Development of Aspergillus nidulans

Genetics ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 158 (3) ◽  
pp. 1027-1036 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cletus A D'Souza ◽  
Bee Na Lee ◽  
Thomas H Adams
Keyword(s):  
Aspergillus Nidulans ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Asexual Development ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Significant Similarity ◽  
Developmental Defects ◽  
Asexual Sporulation ◽  
Type Strains

Abstract We showed previously that a ΔfluG mutation results in a block in Aspergillus nidulans asexual sporulation and that overexpression of fluG activates sporulation in liquid-submerged culture, a condition that does not normally support sporulation of wild-type strains. Here we demonstrate that the entire N-terminal region of FluG (∼400 amino acids) can be deleted without affecting sporulation, indicating that FluG activity resides in the C-terminal half of the protein, which bears significant similarity with GSI-type glutamine synthetases. While FluG has no apparent role in glutamine biosynthesis, we propose that it has an enzymatic role in sporulation factor production. We also describe the isolation of dominant suppressors of ΔfluG(dsg) that should identify components acting downstream of FluG and thereby define the function of FluG in sporulation. The dsgA1 mutation also suppresses the developmental defects resulting from ΔflbA and dominant activating fadA mutations, which both cause constitutive induction of the mycelial proliferation pathway. However, dsgA1 does not suppress the negative influence of these mutations on production of the aflatoxin precursor, sterigmatocystin, indicating that dsgA1 is specific for asexual development. Taken together, our studies define dsgA as a novel component of the asexual sporulation pathway.

scholarly journals Genetic analysis of the phosphatases in Aspergillus nidulans

1965 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Dorn
Keyword(s):  
Alkaline Phosphatase ◽  
Acid Phosphatase ◽  
Genetic Analysis ◽  
Aspergillus Nidulans ◽  
Alkaline Ph ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Linkage Groups ◽  
Partial Restoration ◽  
Suppressor Mutations ◽  
Alkaline And Acid Phosphatase

Summary1. A histochemical method has been applied to the detection of alkaline and acid phosphatase mutants in single colonies of Aspergillus nidulans.2. With the above method it has been possible to isolate mutants in which the alkaline and acid phosphatase activities are affected either separately or simultaneously.3. Crude extracts of wild-type A. nidulans contain four electrophoretically distinct phosphatase components, two with activity at alkaline pH and two with activity at acid pH. Genes affecting three of the four components have been identified.4. Two suppressor mutants of an alkaline phosphataseless mutant (palB7) have been isolated. In a strain carrying palB7 and one of these suppressors, the restoration of an alkaline phosphatase component is accompanied by loss of the faster acid phosphatase component. In a similar strain carrying the other suppressor, the partial restoration of the alkaline phosphatase component goes with an electrophoretic alteration of the slower acid phosphatase component.5. Genetic analysis of twenty-seven mutants has resulted in the identification of fifteen loci affecting the phosphatases. All these loci have been assigned to linkage groups, and twelve of them were also mapped meiotically in relation to other loci.6. One possible model (based on heteropolymeric proteins) has been proposed to account for the electrophoretic and genetic data on the various phosphatase and suppressor mutations.

scholarly journals Genetic and molecular characterization of suppressors of SIR4 mutations in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Genetics ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 122 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
R Schnell ◽  
L D'Ari ◽  
M Foss ◽  
D Goodman ◽  
J Rine
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Null Allele ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Induced Mutations ◽  
New Genes ◽  
Suppressor Mutations ◽  
Silencer Elements ◽  
Compensatory Mutations ◽  
The Stability

Abstract In order to learn more about other proteins that may be involved in repression of HML and HMR in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, extragenic suppressor mutations were identified that could restore repression in cells defective in SIR4, a gene required for function of the silencer elements flanking HML and HMR. These suppressor mutations, which define at least three new genes, SAN1, SAN2 and SAN3, arose at the frequency expected for loss-of-function mutations following mutagenesis. All san mutations were recessive. Suppression by san1 was allele-nonspecific, since san1 could suppress two very different alleles of SIR4, and was locus-specific since san1 was unable to suppress a SIR3 mutation or a variety of mutations conferring auxotrophies. The SAN1 gene was cloned, sequenced, and used to construct a null allele. The null allele had the same phenotype as the EMS-induced mutations and exhibited no pleiotropies of its own. Thus, the SAN1 gene was not essential. SAN1-mediated suppression was neither due to compensatory mutations in interacting proteins, nor to translational missense suppression. SAN1 may act posttranslationally to control the stability or activity of the SIR4 protein.

Establishment of Drosophila imaginal precursor cells is controlled by the Arrowhead gene

Development ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 121 (11) ◽  
pp. 3819-3828 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Curtiss ◽  
J.S. Heilig
Keyword(s):  
Salivary Gland ◽  
Imaginal Disc ◽  
Developmental Regulation ◽  
Precursor Cells ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Regulatory Pathway ◽  
Larval Life ◽  
Specific Loss ◽  
Proper Number

Metamorphosis in Drosophila melanogaster requires synchronization of numerous developmental events that occur in isolated imaginal precursor tissues. The imaginal primordia are established during embryonic stages and are quiescent for much of larval life. The Arrowhead gene is necessary for establishment of proper numbers of cells within a subset of imaginal precursor tissues. Loss-of-function mutations in Arrowhead reduce the number of abdominal histoblasts and salivary gland imaginal ring cells before the proliferative stages of their development. The number of abdominal histoblasts in mutant animals is approximately half that of wild-type, as might result from failure of a single early division of these cells. A neomorphic Arrowhead allele results in the specific loss of the retinal precursors by the early third instar, before they have begun to differentiate. Since Arrowhead mutations affect only subsets of imaginal tissue, there must be distinctions in the developmental regulation of different imaginal precursors. Arrowhead may be part of a regulatory pathway responsible for establishing the proper number of abdominal histoblasts and salivary gland imaginal ring cells. The neomorphic Arrowhead allele, which may cause misexpression of the Arrowhead gene in the eye-antenna imaginal disc, interferes with the establishment or proliferation of retinal precursor cells.

scholarly journals Mechanistic insights into global suppressors of protein folding defects

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gopinath Chattopadhyay ◽  
Jayantika Bhowmick ◽  
Kavyashree Manjunath ◽  
Shahbaz Ahmed ◽  
Parveen Goyal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bacterial Toxin ◽  
Amino Acid Substitutions ◽  
Receptor Binding Domain ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Partial Loss ◽  
Suppressor Mutations ◽  
Key Drivers

Most amino acid substitutions in a protein either lead to partial loss of function or are near neutral. Several studies have shown the existence of second-site mutations that can rescue defects caused by diverse loss of function mutations. Such global suppressor mutations are key drivers of protein evolution. However, the mechanisms responsible for such suppression remain poorly understood. To address this, we characterized multiple suppressor mutations both in isolation and in combination with inactive mutants. We examined five global suppressors of the bacterial toxin CcdB, the known M182T global suppressor of TEM-1 β-lactamase, the N239Y global suppressor of p53-DBD and three suppressors of the SARS-CoV-2 spike Receptor Binding Domain. The suppressors both alone, and in conjunction with inactive mutants, stabilise the protein both thermodynamically and kinetically in-vitro, predominantly through acceleration of the refolding rate parameters. When coupled to inactive mutants they promote increased in-vivo solubilities as well as regain-of-function phenotypes. Our study also demonstrates that the global suppressor approach can be used to consistently stabilise wild-type proteins, including for downstream translational applications.

scholarly journals Reconstructing a wild-type Pseudomonas aeruginosa reference strain PAO1

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Lee ◽  
Larry Gallagher ◽  
Colin Manoil
Keyword(s):  
Reference Strain ◽  
Genetic Selection ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Regulatory Mutation ◽  
Phenotypic Analysis ◽  
Strain Pao1 ◽  
Suppressor Mutations ◽  
Wild Type Parent ◽  
Selection Of

The P. aeruginosa reference strain PAO1 has been used to delineate much of the physiology, metabolism and fundamental biology of the species. The wild-type parent of PAO1 was lost, and PAO1 carries a regulatory mutation introduced for positive genetic selection that affects antibiotic resistance, virulence, quorum sensing and other traits. The mutation is a loss-of-function change in an oxidoreductase gene (mexS), which constitutively activates a stress response controlled by a positive regulator (MexT). Fitness defects associated with the constitutive response have led to the inadvertent selection of mexT– suppressor mutations, creating genetic heterogeneity in PAO1 sublines studied in different laboratories. To help circumvent complications due to the mexS–minus phenotypes, we created a wild-type version of PAO1 (called LPAO) by “reverting” its mexS to the functional allele likely to have been in its parent. Phenotypic analysis revealed that the mexS– allele in PAO1 makes growth sensitive to salt (NaCl) and is lethal when combined with mutations inactivating the major sodium antiporter (ShaABCDEF). The salt sensitivity of PAO1 may underlie some complex mexS– phenotypes and help explain the selection of mexT– suppressor mutations. To facilitate genetic comparisons of PAO1, LPAO and other P. aeruginosa strains, we developed a transformation procedure to transfer selectable alleles, such as transposon insertion alleles, between strains. Overall, the study helps explain phenotypic heterogeneity of PAO1-derived strains and provides resources to help recognize and eliminate difficulties due to it. IMPORTANCE The P. aeruginosa reference strain PAO1 carries a regulatory mutation that may affect processes characterized in it. To eliminate complications due to the mutation, we constructed a version of the missing wild-type parent strain and developed methods to transfer mutations between PAO1 and the new strain. The methods are likely to be applicable to other isolates of P. aeruginosa as well.

scholarly journals Reduced function of the glutathione S-transferase S1 suppresses behavioral hyperexcitability in Drosophila expressing a mutant voltage-gated sodium channel

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hung-Lin Chen ◽  
Junko Kasuya ◽  
Patrick Lansdon ◽  
Garrett Kaas ◽  
Hanxi Tang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Action Potentials ◽  
Null Allele ◽  
Single Gene ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Bioactive Lipids ◽  
Glutathione S Transferase ◽  
Excitable Cells ◽  
Voltage Gated ◽  
Prostaglandin D Synthase

ABSTRACTVoltage-gated sodium (Nav) channels play a central role in the generation and propagation of action potentials in excitable cells such as neurons and muscles. To determine how the phenotypes of Nav-channel mutants are affected by other genes, we performed a forward genetic screen for dominant modifiers of the seizure-prone, gain-of-function Drosophila melanogaster Nav-channel mutant, paraShu. Our analyses using chromosome deficiencies, gene-specific RNA interference, and single-gene mutants revealed that a null allele of glutathione S-transferase S1 (GstS1) dominantly suppresses paraShu phenotypes. Reduced GstS1 function also suppressed phenotypes of other seizure-prone Nav-channel mutants, paraGEFS+ and parabss. Notably, paraShu mutants expressed 50% less GstS1 than wild-type flies, further supporting the notion that paraShu and GstS1 interact functionally. Introduction of a loss-of-function GstS1 mutation into a paraShu background led to up- and down-regulation of various genes, with those encoding cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes most significantly over-represented in this group. Because GstS1 is a fly ortholog of mammalian hematopoietic prostaglandin D synthase, and in mammals CYPs are involved in the oxygenation of polyunsaturated fatty acids including prostaglandins, our results raise the intriguing possibility that bioactive lipids play a role in GstS1-mediated suppression of paraShu phenotypes.

The roles of the homeobox genes aristaless and Distal-less in patterning the legs and wings of Drosophila

Development ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 125 (22) ◽  
pp. 4483-4493 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Campbell ◽  
A. Tomlinson
Keyword(s):  
Null Allele ◽  
Normal Development ◽  
Distal Tibia ◽  
Homeobox Genes ◽  
Clonal Analysis ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Adhesive Properties ◽  
Wing Imaginal Discs ◽  
Mutant Cells

In the leg and wing imaginal discs of Drosophila, the expression domains of the homeobox genes aristaless (al) and Distal-less (Dll) are defined by the secreted signaling molecules Wingless (Wg) and Decapentaplegic (Dpp). Here, the roles played by al and Dll in patterning the legs and wings have been investigated through loss of function studies. In the developing leg, al is expressed at the presumptive tip and a molecularly defined null allele of al reveals that its only function in patterning the leg appears to be to direct the growth and differentiation of the structures at the tip. In contrast, Dll has previously been shown to be required for the development of all of the leg more distal than the coxa. Dll protein can be detected in a central domain in leg discs throughout most of larval development, and in mature discs this domain corresponds to the distal-most region of the leg, the tarsus and the distal tibia. Clonal analysis reveals that late in development these are the only regions in which Dll function is required. However, earlier in development Dll is required in more proximal regions of the leg suggesting it is expressed at high levels in these cells early in development but not later. This reveals a correlation between a temporal requirement for Dll and position along the proximodistal axis; how this may relate to the generation of the P/D axis is discussed. Dll is required in the distal regions of the leg for the expression of tarsal-specific genes including al and bric-a-brac. Dll mutant cells in the leg sort out from wild-type cells suggesting one function of Dll here is to control adhesive properties of cells. Dll is also required for the normal development of the wing, primarily for the differentiation of the wing margin.

scholarly journals cdc2 and the regulation of mitosis: six interacting mcs genes.

Genetics ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 122 (4) ◽  
pp. 773-782 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Molz ◽  
R Booher ◽  
P Young ◽  
D Beach
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Double Mutant ◽  
Mitotic Catastrophe ◽  
Temperature Sensitive ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Lethal Phenotype ◽  
Suppressor Mutations ◽  
A Cell

Abstract A cdc2-3w weel-50 double mutant of fission yeast displays a temperature-sensitive lethal phenotype that is associated with gross abnormalities of chromosome segregation and has been termed mitotic catastrophe. In order to identify new genetic elements that might interact with the cdc2 protein kinase in the regulation of mitosis, we have isolated revertants of the lethal double mutant. The suppressor mutations define six mcs genes (mcs: mitotic catastrophe suppressor) that are not allelic to any of the following mitotic control genes: cdc2, wee 1, cdc13, cdc25, suc1 or nim1. Each mcs mutation is recessive with respect to wild-type in its ability to suppress mitotic catastrophe. None confer a lethal phenotype as a single mutant but few of the mutants are expected to be nulls. A diverse range of genetic interactions between the mcs mutants and other mitotic regulators were uncovered, including the following examples. First, mcs2 cdc2w or mcs6 cdc2w double mutants display a cell cycle defect dependent on the specific wee allele of cdc2. Second, both mcs1 cdc25-22 or mcs4 cdc25-22 double mutants are nonconditionally lethal, even at a temperature normally permissive for cdc25-22. Finally, the characteristic suppression of the cdc25 phenotype by a loss-of-function wee1 mutation is reversed in a mcs3 mutant background. The mcs genes define new mitotic elements that might be activators or substrates of the cdc2 protein kinase.

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