The biology and exploitation of the retrotransposon Ty in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Genome ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 909-919 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Garfinkel ◽  
M. Joan Curcio ◽  
Susan D. Youngren ◽  
Nancy J. Sanders
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Reverse Transcription ◽  
Mobile Genetic Elements ◽  
Yeast Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Strong Promoter ◽  
Ty Elements ◽  
Genetic Elements ◽  
Ty Element ◽  
Viruslike Particles

Retrotransposons are a widely distributed group of eukaryotic mobile genetic elements that transpose through an RNA intermediate. The element is transcribed into RNA, and this RNA is reverse transcribed into a DNA copy capable of insertion into many different chromosomal locations. Maturation of proteins and reverse transcription take place within noninfectious intracellular viruslike particles. We have studied the element Ty, which is found dispersed in the genome of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The frequency of Ty element transposition is normally quite low but can be greatly increased by expressing an element from a strong promoter. We have used the ability to control the level of Ty transposition to investigate the functions of Ty proteins, the regulation of Ty transposition, and the exploitation of Ty elements as insertional mutagens in yeast. The information gained from these experiments should be applicable to the study of retrotransposons found in multicellular organisms.Key words: yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, transposons, Ty elements, mutagenesis.

Involvement of cDNA in homologous recombination between Ty elements in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1613-1620
Author(s):  
C Melamed ◽  
Y Nevo ◽  
M Kupiec
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Homologous Recombination ◽  
Reverse Transcriptase ◽  
Gene Conversion ◽  
Reverse Transcription ◽  
Repeated Sequences ◽  
Homologous Gene ◽  
Ty Elements ◽  
Low Level ◽  
Ty Element

Strains carrying a marked Ty element (TyUra) in the LYS2 locus were transformed with plasmids bearing a differently marked Ty1 element (Ty1Neo) under the control of the GAL promoter. When these strains were grown in glucose, a low level of gene conversion events involving TyUra was detected. Upon growth on galactose an increase in the rate of gene conversion was seen. This homologous recombination is not the consequence of increased levels of transposition. When an intron-containing fragment was inserted into Ty1Neo, some of the convertants had the intron removed, implying an RNA intermediate. Mutations that affect reverse transcriptase or reverse transcription of Ty1Neo greatly reduce the induction of recombination in galactose. Thus, Ty cDNA is involved in homologous gene conversion with chromosomal copies of Ty elements. Our results have implications about the way families of repeated sequences retain homogeneity throughout evolution.

scholarly journals Involvement of cDNA in homologous recombination between Ty elements in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1613-1620 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Melamed ◽  
Y Nevo ◽  
M Kupiec
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Homologous Recombination ◽  
Reverse Transcriptase ◽  
Gene Conversion ◽  
Reverse Transcription ◽  
Repeated Sequences ◽  
Homologous Gene ◽  
Ty Elements ◽  
Low Level ◽  
Ty Element

Strains carrying a marked Ty element (TyUra) in the LYS2 locus were transformed with plasmids bearing a differently marked Ty1 element (Ty1Neo) under the control of the GAL promoter. When these strains were grown in glucose, a low level of gene conversion events involving TyUra was detected. Upon growth on galactose an increase in the rate of gene conversion was seen. This homologous recombination is not the consequence of increased levels of transposition. When an intron-containing fragment was inserted into Ty1Neo, some of the convertants had the intron removed, implying an RNA intermediate. Mutations that affect reverse transcriptase or reverse transcription of Ty1Neo greatly reduce the induction of recombination in galactose. Thus, Ty cDNA is involved in homologous gene conversion with chromosomal copies of Ty elements. Our results have implications about the way families of repeated sequences retain homogeneity throughout evolution.

scholarly journals Tempo and Mode of Ty Element Evolution in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Genetics ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 151 (4) ◽  
pp. 1341-1351 ◽  
Author(s):  
I King Jordan ◽  
John F McDonald
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Negative Selection ◽  
Sequence Variation ◽  
Size Variation ◽  
Sequence Comparisons ◽  
Ty Elements ◽  
Ty Element ◽  
Amino Acid Sequence Variation ◽  
Element Evolution ◽  
High Level

Abstract The Saccharomyces cerevisiae genome contains five families of long terminal repeat (LTR) retrotransposons, Ty1–Ty5. The sequencing of the S. cerevisiae genome provides an unprecedented opportunity to examine the patterns of molecular variation existing among the entire genomic complement of Ty retrotransposons. We report the results of an analysis of the nucleotide and amino acid sequence variation within and between the five Ty element families of the S. cerevisiae genome. Our results indicate that individual Ty element families tend to be highly homogenous in both sequence and size variation. Comparisons of within-element 5′ and 3′ LTR sequences indicate that the vast majority of Ty elements have recently transposed. Furthermore, intrafamily Ty sequence comparisons reveal the action of negative selection on Ty element coding sequences. These results taken together suggest that there is a high level of genomic turnover of S. cerevisiae Ty elements, which is presumably in response to selective pressure to escape host-mediated repression and elimination mechanisms.

scholarly journals Recombination of Ty elements in yeast can be induced by a double-strand break.

Genetics ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 140 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Parket ◽  
O Inbar ◽  
M Kupiec
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Cell Cycle ◽  
Strand Break ◽  
Double Strand Break ◽  
The Other ◽  
Direct Repeats ◽  
Yeast Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Low Frequencies ◽  
Ty Elements ◽  
Main Family

Abstract The Ty retrotransposons are the main family of dispersed repeated sequences in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. These elements are flanked by a pair of long terminal direct repeats (LTRs). Previous experiments have shown that Ty elements recombine at low frequencies, despite the fact that they are present in 30 copies per genome. This frequency is not highly increased by treatments that cause DNA damage, such as UV irradiation. In this study, we show that it is possible to increase the recombination level of a genetically marked Ty by creating a double-strand break in it. This break is repaired by two competing mechanisms: one of them leaves a single LTR in place of the Ty, and the other is a gene conversion event in which the marked Ty is replaced by an ectopically located one. In a strain in which the marked Ty has only one LTR, the double-strand break is repaired by conversion. We have also measured the efficiency of repair and monitored the progression of the cells through the cell-cycle. We found that in the presence of a double-strand break in the marked Ty, a proportion of the cells is unable to resume growth.

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae genome contains functional and nonfunctional copies of transposon Ty1

1988 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 1432-1442 ◽  
Author(s):  
J D Boeke ◽  
D Eichinger ◽  
D Castrillon ◽  
G R Fink
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Long Terminal Repeat ◽  
Missense Mutation ◽  
Dna Sequence ◽  
Open Reading Frame ◽  
Yeast Genome ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Ty Elements ◽  
Ty Element ◽  
Repeat Sequences

Saccharomyces cerevisiae Ty elements are transposons closely related to retroviruses. The DNA sequence of a functional Ty element (TyH3) is presented. The long terminal repeat sequences are different, suggesting that TyH3 is a recombinant Ty element. A chromosomal Ty element near the LYS2 gene, Ty173, was found to be nonfunctional, even though it has no detectable insertions or deletions. The defect in Ty173 transposition is caused by a missense mutation giving rise to a Leu-to-Ile substitution in the TYB (pol) open reading frame. Several chromosomal Ty elements carry this lesion in their DNA, indicating that nonfunctional Ty elements are common in the yeast genome.

Meiotic recombination between repeated transposable elements in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

1988 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 2942-2954
Author(s):  
M Kupiec ◽  
T D Petes
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Transposable Elements ◽  
Gene Conversion ◽  
Meiotic Recombination ◽  
Small Region ◽  
Ty Elements ◽  
Ty Element ◽  
Reciprocal Exchange ◽  
Gene Conversions ◽  
Conversion Tract

We have measured the frequency of meiotic recombination between marked Ty elements in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae genome. These recombination events were usually nonreciprocal (gene conversions) and sometimes involved nonhomologous chromosomes. The frequency of ectopic gene conversion among Ty elements appeared lower than expected on the basis of previous studies of recombination between artificially constructed repeats. The conversion events involved either a subset of the total Ty elements in the genome or the conversion tract was restricted to a small region of the Ty element. In addition, the observed conversion events were very infrequently associated with reciprocal exchange.

Inhibition of Ty1 transposition by mating pheromones in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

1991 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 2736-2743
Author(s):  
H Xu ◽  
J D Boeke
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Yeast Cells ◽  
Mating Pheromone ◽  
Yeast Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Transposition Frequency ◽  
Mating Pheromones ◽  
Retroviral Replication ◽  
Viruslike Particles

The Ty1 elements in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae are a family of retrotransposons which transpose via a process similar to that of retroviral replication. We report here that the Ty1 transposition process can be blocked posttranscriptionally by treatment of cells with mating pheromones. When haploid yeast cells are treated with appropriate mating pheromones, the transposition frequency of a marked Ty1 element driven by the GAL1 promoter is greatly diminished. Ty1 viruslike particles (VLPs), the putative intermediates for transposition, can be isolated from mating pheromone-treated cells. These VLPs accumulate to normal levels but are aberrant in that they produce very few reverse transcripts of Ty1 RNA both in vivo and in vitro and contain subnormal amounts of p90-TYB and related proteins. In addition, a TYA phosphoprotein product accumulates in treated cells, and some species of TYB proteins have decreased stability. We also show that decreased transposition in mating pheromone-treated cells is not a consequence of simply blocking cell division, since Ty1 transposes at a nearly normal rate in yeast cells arrested in G2 by the drug nocodazole.

scholarly journals The Saccharomyces cerevisiae genome contains functional and nonfunctional copies of transposon Ty1.

1988 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 1432-1442 ◽  
Author(s):  
J D Boeke ◽  
D Eichinger ◽  
D Castrillon ◽  
G R Fink
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Long Terminal Repeat ◽  
Missense Mutation ◽  
Dna Sequence ◽  
Open Reading Frame ◽  
Yeast Genome ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
Ty Elements ◽  
Ty Element ◽  
Repeat Sequences

Saccharomyces cerevisiae Ty elements are transposons closely related to retroviruses. The DNA sequence of a functional Ty element (TyH3) is presented. The long terminal repeat sequences are different, suggesting that TyH3 is a recombinant Ty element. A chromosomal Ty element near the LYS2 gene, Ty173, was found to be nonfunctional, even though it has no detectable insertions or deletions. The defect in Ty173 transposition is caused by a missense mutation giving rise to a Leu-to-Ile substitution in the TYB (pol) open reading frame. Several chromosomal Ty elements carry this lesion in their DNA, indicating that nonfunctional Ty elements are common in the yeast genome.

scholarly journals Inhibition of Ty1 transposition by mating pheromones in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

1991 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 2736-2743 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Xu ◽  
J D Boeke
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Yeast Cells ◽  
Mating Pheromone ◽  
Yeast Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Transposition Frequency ◽  
Mating Pheromones ◽  
Retroviral Replication ◽  
Viruslike Particles

The Ty1 elements in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae are a family of retrotransposons which transpose via a process similar to that of retroviral replication. We report here that the Ty1 transposition process can be blocked posttranscriptionally by treatment of cells with mating pheromones. When haploid yeast cells are treated with appropriate mating pheromones, the transposition frequency of a marked Ty1 element driven by the GAL1 promoter is greatly diminished. Ty1 viruslike particles (VLPs), the putative intermediates for transposition, can be isolated from mating pheromone-treated cells. These VLPs accumulate to normal levels but are aberrant in that they produce very few reverse transcripts of Ty1 RNA both in vivo and in vitro and contain subnormal amounts of p90-TYB and related proteins. In addition, a TYA phosphoprotein product accumulates in treated cells, and some species of TYB proteins have decreased stability. We also show that decreased transposition in mating pheromone-treated cells is not a consequence of simply blocking cell division, since Ty1 transposes at a nearly normal rate in yeast cells arrested in G2 by the drug nocodazole.

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