Short-Flagella Mutants of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Genetics ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 115 (4) ◽  
pp. 685-691
Author(s):  
Michael R Kuchka ◽  
Jonathan W Jarvik

ABSTRACT Six short-flagella mutants were isolated by screening clones of mutagenized Chlamydomonas for slow swimmers. The six mutants identify three unlinked Mendelian genes, with three mutations in gene shf-1, two in shf-2 and one in shf-3. shf-1 and shf-2 have been mapped to chromosomes VI and I, respectively. Two of the shf-1 mutations have temperature-sensitive flagellar-assembly phenotypes, and one shf-2 mutant has a cold-sensitive phenotype. shf shf double mutants were constructed; depending on the alleles present they showed either flagellaless or short-flagella phenotypes. Phenotypic revertants of shf-1 and shf-2 mutants were isolated, and certain of them were found to carry extragenic suppressors, some dominant and some recessive. We suspect that the shf mutations affect components of a specific flagellar size-control system, the existence of which has been suggested by a variety of physiological experiments.

Genetics ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 128 (3) ◽  
pp. 549-561 ◽  
Author(s):  
F G Lux ◽  
S K Dutcher

Abstract Through the isolation of suppressors of temperature-sensitive flagellar assembly mutations at the FLA10 locus of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, we have identified six other genes involved in flagellar assembly. Mutations at these suppressor loci, termed SUF1-SUF6, display allele specificity with respect to which fla10- mutant alleles they suppress. An additional mutation, apm1-122, which confers resistance to the plant herbicides amiprophos-methyl and oryzalin, was also found to interact with mutations at the FLA10 locus. The apm1-122 mutation in combination with three fla10- mutant alleles results in synthetic cold-sensitive cell division defects, and in combination with an additional pseudo-wild-type fla10- allele yields a synthetic temperature-sensitive flagellar motility phenotype. Based upon the genetic interactions of these loci, we propose that the FLA10 gene product interacts with multiple components of the flagellar apparatus and plays a role both in flagellar assembly and in the cell cycle.


1992 ◽  
Vol 118 (5) ◽  
pp. 1163-1176 ◽  
Author(s):  
M E Porter ◽  
J Power ◽  
S K Dutcher

We have analyzed extragenic suppressors of paralyzed flagella mutations in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii in an effort to identify new dynein mutations. A temperature-sensitive allele of the PF16 locus was mutagenized and then screened for revertants that could swim at the restrictive temperature (Dutcher et al. 1984. J. Cell Biol. 98:229-236). In backcrosses of one of the revertant strains to wild-type, we recovered both the original pf16 mutation and a second, unlinked suppressor mutation with its own flagellar phenotype. This mutation has been identified by both recombination and complementation tests as a new allele of the previously uncharacterized PF9 locus on linkage group XII/XIII. SDS-PAGE analysis of isolated flagellar axonemes and dynein extracts has demonstrated that the pf9 strains are missing four polypeptides that form the I1 inner arm dynein subunit. The primary effect of the loss of the I1 subunit is a decrease in the forward swimming velocity due to a change in the flagellar waveform. Both the flagellar beat frequency and the axonemal ATPase activity are nearly wild-type. Examination of axonemes by thin section electron microscopy and image averaging methods reveals that a specific domain of the inner arm complex is missing in the pf9 mutant strains (see accompanying paper by Mastronarde et al.). When combined with other flagellar defects, the loss of the I1 subunit has synergistic effects on both flagellar assembly and flagellar motility. These synthetic phenotypes provide a screen for new suppressor mutations in other loci. Using this approach, we have identified the first interactive suppressors of a dynein arm mutation and an unusual bypass suppressor mutation.


1990 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 2308-2314 ◽  
Author(s):  
T M Dunn ◽  
D Shortle

Extragenic suppressors of a new temperature-sensitive mutation (act1-4) in the actin gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae were isolated in an attempt to identify genes whose products interact directly with actin. One suppressor with a cold-sensitive growth phenotype defined the new gene, SAC7, which was mapped, cloned, sequenced, and disrupted. Genetic analysis of strains that are disrupted for SAC7 demonstrated that the protein is required for normal growth and actin assembly at low temperatures. Surprisingly, null mutations in SAC7 also suppressed the temperature-sensitive growth defect caused by the act1-1 and act1-4 mutations, whereas they were lethal in combination with the temperature-sensitive allele act1-2. These results support the notion that the SAC7 gene product is involved in the normal assembly or function or both of actin.


1990 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 2308-2314
Author(s):  
T M Dunn ◽  
D Shortle

Extragenic suppressors of a new temperature-sensitive mutation (act1-4) in the actin gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae were isolated in an attempt to identify genes whose products interact directly with actin. One suppressor with a cold-sensitive growth phenotype defined the new gene, SAC7, which was mapped, cloned, sequenced, and disrupted. Genetic analysis of strains that are disrupted for SAC7 demonstrated that the protein is required for normal growth and actin assembly at low temperatures. Surprisingly, null mutations in SAC7 also suppressed the temperature-sensitive growth defect caused by the act1-1 and act1-4 mutations, whereas they were lethal in combination with the temperature-sensitive allele act1-2. These results support the notion that the SAC7 gene product is involved in the normal assembly or function or both of actin.


1980 ◽  
Vol 85 (2) ◽  
pp. 258-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
J W Jarvik ◽  
J L Rosenbaum

A mutant strain of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is shown to possess an oversized flagellar membrane protein. The mutant has paralyzed flagella, is temperature sensitive for flagellar assembly, and has an abnormal axonemal protein composition. All phenotypes appear to derive from a single Mendelian mutation, and genetic analysis suggests that the mutation, which call ts222, is in the gene pfl. Because pf1 mutants are known to have radial-spoke defects (Piperno et al., 1977, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 74:1600-1604; and Witman et al., 1978, J. Cell Biol. 76:729-797), a relation as yet undefined appears to exist between radial-spoke and flagellar membrane biogenesis.


Genetics ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 123 (4) ◽  
pp. 715-724 ◽  
Author(s):  
M L Nonet ◽  
R A Young

Abstract The largest subunit of RNA polymerase II contains a repeated heptapeptide sequence at its carboxy terminus. Yeast mutants with certain partial deletions of the carboxy-terminal repeat (CTR) domain are temperature-sensitive, cold-sensitive and are inositol auxotrophs. Intragenic and extragenic suppressors of the cold-sensitive phenotype of CTR domain deletion mutants were isolated and studied to investigate the function of this domain. Two types of intragenic suppressing mutations suppress the temperature-sensitivity, cold-sensitivity and inositol auxotrophy of CTR domain deletion mutants. Most intragenic mutations enlarge the repeat domain by duplicating various portions of the repeat coding sequence. Other intragenic suppressing mutations are point mutations in a conserved segment of the large subunit. An extragenic suppressing mutation (SRB2-1) was isolated that strongly suppresses the conditional and auxotrophic phenotypes of CTR domain mutations. The SRB2 gene was isolated and mapped, and an SRB2 partial deletion mutation (srb2 delta 10) was constructed. The srb2 delta 10 mutants are temperature-sensitive, cold-sensitive and are inositol auxotrophs. These phenotypes are characteristic of mutations in genes encoding components of the transcription apparatus. We propose that the SRB2 gene encodes a factor that is involved in RNA synthesis and may interact with the CTR domain of the large subunit of RNA polymerase II.


Genetics ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 129 (3) ◽  
pp. 623-630 ◽  
Author(s):  
J M Sommer ◽  
A Newton

Abstract A pseudoreversion analysis was used to examine the role of cell division genes in polar morphogenesis in Caulobacter crescentus. Extragenic suppressors of temperature sensitive mutations in pleC, a pleiotropic gene required for cell motility, formation of polar phi CbK bacteriophage receptors, and stalk formation, were isolated. These suppressors, which restored motility at 37 degrees C, simultaneously conferred a cold sensitive cell division phenotype and they were mapped to the three new cell division genes divJ, divL and divK. The cold-sensitive mutations in divL, and to a lesser extent divJ, exhibited a relatively narrow range of suppression. The cold-sensitive cell division mutation in divK, by contrast, suppressed all pleC mutations examined and behaved as a classical bypass suppressor. The direct role of this cell division gene in the regulation of motility is suggested by the observation that divK341 mapped to the same locus as pleD301, a pleiotropic mutation that prevents loss of motility and stalk formation. These results provide strong evidence that the cell division and developmental pathways are interconnected and they support our earlier conclusion that cell division is required for the regulation of polar morphogenesis and differentiation in C. crescentus.


Genetics ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 165 (3) ◽  
pp. 1071-1081
Author(s):  
Colin P C De Souza ◽  
Kevin P Horn ◽  
Kathryn Masker ◽  
Stephen A Osmani

Abstract The Aspergillus nidulans NIMA kinase is essential for mitotic entry. At restrictive temperature, temperature-sensitive nimA alleles arrest in G2, before accumulation of NIMA in the nucleus. We performed a screen for extragenic suppressors of the nimA1 allele and isolated two cold-sensitive son (suppressor of nimA1) mutants. The sonA1 mutant encoded a nucleoporin that is a homolog of yeast Gle2/Rae1. We have now cloned SONB, a second nucleoporin genetically interacting with NIMA. sonB is essential and encodes a homolog of the human NUP98/NUP96 precursor. Similar to NUP98/NUP96, SONBNUP98/NUP96 is autoproteolytically cleaved to generate SONBNUP98 and SONBNUP96. SONBNUP98 localizes to the nuclear pore complex and contains a GLEBS domain (Gle2 binding sequence) that binds SONAGLE2. A point mutation within the GLEBS domain of SONB1NUP98 suppresses the temperature sensitivity of the nimA1 allele and compromises the physical interaction between SONAGLE2 and SONB1NUP98. The sonB1 mutation also causes sensitivity to hydroxyurea. We isolated the histone H2A-H2B gene pair as a copy-number suppressor of sonB1 cold sensitivity and hydroxyurea sensitivity. The data suggest that the nucleoporins SONAGLE2 and SONBNUP98 and the NIMA kinase interact and regulate nuclear accumulation of mitotic regulators to help promote mitosis.


1977 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
B Huang ◽  
M R Rifkin ◽  
D J Luck

A series of conditional mutants of the algal, biflagellate Chlamydomonas reinhardtii with temperature-sensitive defects in flagellar assembly and function were isolated. The genetics and phenotypes of 21 mutants displaying a rapid alteration in flagellar function upon shift from the permissive (20 degrees C) to the restrictive (32 degrees C) temperatures are described. These mutants designated as "drop-down" or dd-mutants have been placed in four categories on the basis of their defective phenotypes: (a) dd-assembly mutants - the preformed flagella are resorbed at 32 degrees C and reassembly of flagella is inhibited; (b) dd-fragile flagella mutants - the flagella are lost by detachment at 32 degrees C, but can be reassembled; (c) dd-motility mutants - the flagella are retained at 32 degrees C, but are functionally defective; (d) dd-lethal mutants - display combined defects in flagellar function and cell growth. Tetrad analysis of the mutants back-crossed to wild-type, recombination analysis of intermutant crosses, and complementation tests in the construction of heterozygous diploid strains indicate that at least 14 nuclear genetic loci are represented among 21 mutants. The availability of temperature-sensitive mutations affecting the assembly and function of the flagellum suggests that the morphogenesis of this complex eukaryotic organelle is amenable to genetic dissection.


Genetics ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 156 (4) ◽  
pp. 1573-1584
Author(s):  
Sarah Lea McGuire ◽  
Dana L Roe ◽  
Brett W Carter ◽  
Robert L Carter ◽  
Sean P Grace ◽  
...  

AbstractThe Aspergillus nidulans NIMXCDC2 protein kinase has been shown to be required for both the G2/M and G1/S transitions, and recent evidence has implicated a role for NIMXCDC2 in septation and conidiation. While much is understood of its G2/M function, little is known about the functions of NIMXCDC2 during G1/S, septation, and conidiophore development. In an attempt to better understand how NIMXCDC2 is involved in these processes, we have isolated four extragenic suppressors of the A. nidulans nimX2cdc2 temperature-sensitive mutation. Mutation of these suppressor genes, designated snxA-snxD for suppressor of nimX, affects nuclear division, septation, and conidiation. The cold-sensitive snxA1 mutation leads to arrest of nuclear division during G1 or early S. snxB1 causes hyperseptation in the hyphae and sensitivity to hydroxyurea, while snxC1 causes septation in the conidiophore stalk and aberrant conidiophore structure. snxD1 leads to slight septation defects and hydroxyurea sensitivity. The additional phenotypes that result from the suppressor mutations provide genetic evidence that NIMXCDC2 affects septation and conidiation in addition to nuclear division, and cloning and biochemical analysis of these will allow a better understanding of the role of NIMXCDC2 in these processes.


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