scholarly journals Examining the Role of Membrane Lipid Composition in Determining the Ethanol Tolerance of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

2014 ◽  
Vol 80 (10) ◽  
pp. 2966-2972 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clark M. Henderson ◽  
David E. Block

ABSTRACTYeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) has an innate ability to withstand high levels of ethanol that would prove lethal to or severely impair the physiology of other organisms. Significant efforts have been undertaken to elucidate the biochemical and biophysical mechanisms of how ethanol interacts with lipid bilayers and cellular membranes. This research has implicated the yeast cellular membrane as the primary target of the toxic effects of ethanol. Analysis of model membrane systems exposed to ethanol has demonstrated ethanol's perturbing effect on lipid bilayers, and altering the lipid composition of these model bilayers can mitigate the effect of ethanol. In addition, cell membrane composition has been correlated with the ethanol tolerance of yeast cells. However, the physical phenomena behind this correlation are likely to be complex. Previous work based on often divergent experimental conditions and time-consuming low-resolution methodologies that limit large-scale analysis of yeast fermentations has fallen short of revealing shared mechanisms of alcohol tolerance inSaccharomyces cerevisiae. Lipidomics, a modern mass spectrometry-based approach to analyze the complex physiological regulation of lipid composition in yeast and other organisms, has helped to uncover potential mechanisms for alcohol tolerance in yeast. Recent experimental work utilizing lipidomics methodologies has provided a more detailed molecular picture of the relationship between lipid composition and ethanol tolerance. While it has become clear that the yeast cell membrane composition affects its ability to tolerate ethanol, the molecular mechanisms of yeast alcohol tolerance remain to be elucidated.

2013 ◽  
Vol 79 (17) ◽  
pp. 5345-5356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clark M. Henderson ◽  
Wade F. Zeno ◽  
Larry A. Lerno ◽  
Marjorie L. Longo ◽  
David E. Block

ABSTRACTDuring alcoholic fermentation,Saccharomyces cerevisiaeis exposed to a host of environmental and physiological stresses. Extremes of fermentation temperature have previously been demonstrated to induce fermentation arrest under growth conditions that would otherwise result in complete sugar utilization at “normal” temperatures and nutrient levels. Fermentations were carried out at 15°C, 25°C, and 35°C in a defined high-sugar medium using threeSaccharomyces cerevisiaestrains with diverse fermentation characteristics. The lipid composition of these strains was analyzed at two fermentation stages, when ethanol levels were low early in stationary phase and in late stationary phase at high ethanol concentrations. Several lipids exhibited dramatic differences in membrane concentration in a temperature-dependent manner. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used as a tool to elucidate correlations between specific lipid species and fermentation temperature for each yeast strain. Fermentations carried out at 35°C exhibited very high concentrations of several phosphatidylinositol species, whereas at 15°C these yeast strains exhibited higher levels of phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylcholine species with medium-chain fatty acids. Furthermore, membrane concentrations of ergosterol were highest in the yeast strain that experienced stuck fermentations at all three temperatures. Fluorescence anisotropy measurements of yeast cell membrane fluidity during fermentation were carried out using the lipophilic fluorophore diphenylhexatriene. These measurements demonstrate that the changes in the lipid composition of these yeast strains across the range of fermentation temperatures used in this study did not significantly affect cell membrane fluidity. However, the results from this study indicate that fermentingS. cerevisiaemodulates its membrane lipid composition in a temperature-dependent manner.


mBio ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andy Hesketh ◽  
Marta Vergnano ◽  
Stephen G. Oliver

ABSTRACT Correlations between gene transcription and the abundance of high-energy purine nucleotides in Saccharomyces cerevisiae have often been noted. However, there has been no systematic investigation of this phenomenon in the absence of confounding factors such as nutrient status and growth rate, and there is little hard evidence for a causal relationship. Whether transcription is fundamentally responsive to prevailing cellular energetic conditions via sensing of intracellular purine nucleotides, independently of specific nutrition, remains an important question. The controlled nutritional environment of chemostat culture revealed a strong correlation between ATP and GTP abundance and the transcription of genes required for growth. Short pathways for the inducible and futile consumption of ATP or GTP were engineered into S. cerevisiae, permitting analysis of the transcriptional effect of an increased demand for these nucleotides. During steady-state growth using the fermentable carbon source glucose, the futile consumption of ATP led to a decrease in intracellular ATP concentration but an increase in GTP and the guanylate energy charge (GEC). Expression of transcripts encoding proteins involved in ribosome biogenesis, and those controlled by promoters subject to SWI/SNF-dependent chromatin remodelling, was correlated with these nucleotide pool changes. Similar nucleotide abundance changes were observed using a nonfermentable carbon source, but an effect on the growth-associated transcriptional programme was absent. Induction of the GTP-cycling pathway had only marginal effects on nucleotide abundance and gene transcription. The transcriptional response of respiring cells to glucose was dampened in chemostats induced for ATP cycling, but not GTP cycling, and this was primarily associated with altered adenine nucleotide levels. IMPORTANCE This paper investigates whether, independently of the supply of any specific nutrient, gene transcription responds to the energy status of the cell by monitoring ATP and GTP levels. Short pathways for the inducible and futile consumption of ATP or GTP were engineered into the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and the effect of an increased demand for these purine nucleotides on gene transcription was analyzed. The resulting changes in transcription were most consistently associated with changes in GTP and GEC levels, although the reprogramming in gene expression during glucose repression is sensitive to adenine nucleotide levels. The results show that GTP levels play a central role in determining how genes act to respond to changes in energy supply and that any comprehensive understanding of the control of eukaryotic gene expression requires the elucidation of how changes in guanine nucleotide abundance are sensed and transduced to alter the global pattern of transcription.


2015 ◽  
Vol 81 (11) ◽  
pp. 3688-3698 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazutaka Sawada ◽  
Tomoya Sato ◽  
Hiroshi Hamajima ◽  
Lahiru Niroshan Jayakody ◽  
Miyo Hirata ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTIn nature, different microorganisms create communities through their physiochemical and metabolic interactions. Many fermenting microbes, such as yeasts, lactic acid bacteria, and acetic acid bacteria, secrete acidic substances and grow faster at acidic pH values. However, on the surface of cereals, the pH is neutral to alkaline. Therefore, in order to grow on cereals, microbes must adapt to the alkaline environment at the initial stage of colonization; such adaptations are also crucial for industrial fermentation. Here, we show that the yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae, which is incapable of synthesizing glucosylceramide (GlcCer), adapted to alkaline conditions after exposure to GlcCer from koji cereal cultured withAspergillus kawachii. We also show that various species of GlcCer derived from different plants and fungi similarly conferred alkali tolerance to yeast. Although exogenous ceramide also enhanced the alkali tolerance of yeast, no discernible degradation of GlcCer to ceramide was observed in the yeast culture, suggesting that exogenous GlcCer itself exerted the activity. Exogenous GlcCer also increased ethanol tolerance and modified the flavor profile of the yeast cells by altering the membrane properties. These results indicate that GlcCer fromA. kawachiimodifies the physiology of the yeastS. cerevisiaeand demonstrate a new mechanism for cooperation between microbes in food fermentation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 86 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rui Yao ◽  
Pei Zhou ◽  
Chengjin Wu ◽  
Liming Liu ◽  
Jing Wu

ABSTRACT In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Y family DNA polymerase Rev1 is involved in the repair of DNA damage by translesion DNA synthesis (TLS). In the current study, to elucidate the role of Rev1 in oxidative stress-induced DNA damage in S. cerevisiae, REV1 was deleted and overexpressed; transcriptome analysis of these mutants along with the wild-type strain was performed to screen potential genes that could be associated with REV1 during response to DNA damage. When the yeast cells were treated with 2 mM H2O2, the deletion of REV1 resulted in a 1.5- and 2.8-fold decrease in the survival rate and mutation frequency, respectively, whereas overexpression of REV1 increased the survival rate and mutation frequency by 1.1- and 2.9-fold, respectively, compared to the survival rate and mutation frequency of the wild-type strain. Transcriptome and phenotypic analyses identified that Sml1 aggravated oxidative stress in the yeast cells by inhibiting the activity of Rev1. This inhibition was due to the physical interaction between the BRCA1 C terminus (BRCT) domain of Rev1 and amino acid residues 36 to 70 of Sml1; the cell survival rate and mutation frequency increased by 1.8- and 3.1-fold, respectively, when this interaction was blocked. We also found that Sml1 inhibited Rev1 phosphorylation under oxidative stress and that deletion of SML1 increased the phosphorylation of Rev1 by 46%, whereas overexpression of SML1 reduced phosphorylation of Rev1. Overall, these findings demonstrate that Sml1 could be a novel regulator that mediates Rev1 dephosphorylation to inhibit its activity during oxidative stress. IMPORTANCE Rev1 was critical for cell growth in S. cerevisiae, and the deletion of REV1 caused a severe growth defect in cells exposed to oxidative stress (2 mM H2O2). Furthermore, we found that Sml1 physically interacted with Rev1 and inhibited Rev1 phosphorylation, thereby inhibiting Rev1 DNA antioxidant activity. These findings indicate that Sml1 could be a novel regulator for Rev1 in response to DNA damage by oxidative stress.


2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jayasankar Mohanakrishnan Kaimal ◽  
Ganapathi Kandasamy ◽  
Fabian Gasser ◽  
Claes Andréasson

ABSTRACT Protein aggregation is intimately associated with cellular stress and is accelerated during aging, disease, and cellular dysfunction. Yeast cells rely on the ATP-consuming chaperone Hsp104 to disaggregate proteins together with Hsp70. Hsp110s are ancient and abundant chaperones that form complexes with Hsp70. Here we provide in vivo data showing that the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Hsp110s Sse1 and Sse2 are essential for Hsp104-dependent protein disaggregation. Following heat shock, complexes of Hsp110 and Hsp70 are recruited to protein aggregates and function together with Hsp104 in the disaggregation process. In the absence of Hsp110, targeting of Hsp70 and Hsp104 to the aggregates is impaired, and the residual Hsp104 that still reaches the aggregates fails to disaggregate. Thus, coordinated activities of both Hsp104 and Hsp110 are required to reactivate aggregated proteins. These findings have important implications for the understanding of how eukaryotic cells manage misfolded and amyloid proteins.


2016 ◽  
Vol 83 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna N. Zyrina ◽  
Ekaterina A. Smirnova ◽  
Olga V. Markova ◽  
Fedor F. Severin ◽  
Dmitry A. Knorre

ABSTRACT There are two superoxide dismutases in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae—cytoplasmic and mitochondrial enzymes. Inactivation of the cytoplasmic enzyme, Sod1p, renders the cells sensitive to a variety of stresses, while inactivation of the mitochondrial isoform, Sod2p, typically has a weaker effect. One exception is ethanol-induced stress. Here we studied the role of Sod2p in ethanol tolerance of yeast. First, we found that repression of SOD2 prevents ethanol-induced relocalization of yeast hydrogen peroxide-sensing transcription factor Yap1p, one of the key stress resistance proteins. In agreement with this, the levels of Trx2p and Gsh1p, proteins encoded by Yap1 target genes, were decreased in the absence of Sod2p. Analysis of the ethanol sensitivities of the cells lacking Sod2p, Yap1p, or both indicated that the two proteins act in the same pathway. Moreover, preconditioning with hydrogen peroxide restored the ethanol resistance of yeast cells with repressed SOD2. Interestingly, we found that mitochondrion-to-nucleus signaling by Rtg proteins antagonizes Yap1p activation. Together, our data suggest that hydrogen peroxide produced by Sod2p activates Yap1p and thus plays a signaling role in ethanol tolerance. IMPORTANCE Baker's yeast harbors multiple systems that ensure tolerance to high concentrations of ethanol. Still, the role of mitochondria under severe ethanol stress in yeast is not completely clear. Our study revealed a signaling function of mitochondria which contributes significantly to the ethanol tolerance of yeast cells. We found that mitochondrial superoxide dismutase Sod2p and cytoplasmic hydrogen peroxide sensor Yap1p act together as a module of the mitochondrion-to-nucleus signaling pathway. We also report cross talk between this pathway and the conventional retrograde signaling cascade activated by dysfunctional mitochondria.


2016 ◽  
Vol 82 (10) ◽  
pp. 3052-3060 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosa de Llanos ◽  
Carlos Andrés Martínez-Garay ◽  
Josep Fita-Torró ◽  
Antonia María Romero ◽  
María Teresa Martínez-Pastor ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTFungi, including the yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae, lack ferritin and use vacuoles as iron storage organelles. This work explored how plant ferritin expression influenced baker's yeast iron metabolism. Soybean seed ferritin H1 (SFerH1) and SFerH2 genes were cloned and expressed in yeast cells. Both soybean ferritins assembled as multimeric complexes, which bound yeast intracellular ironin vivoand, consequently, induced the activation of the genes expressed during iron scarcity. Soybean ferritin protected yeast cells that lacked the Ccc1 vacuolar iron detoxification transporter from toxic iron levels by reducing cellular oxidation, thus allowing growth at high iron concentrations. Interestingly, when simultaneously expressed inccc1Δ cells, SFerH1 and SFerH2 assembled as heteropolymers, which further increased iron resistance and reduced the oxidative stress produced by excess iron compared to ferritin homopolymer complexes. Finally, soybean ferritin expression led to increased iron accumulation in both wild-type andccc1Δ yeast cells at certain environmental iron concentrations.IMPORTANCEIron deficiency is a worldwide nutritional disorder to which women and children are especially vulnerable. A common strategy to combat iron deficiency consists of dietary supplementation with inorganic iron salts, whose bioavailability is very low. Iron-enriched yeasts and cereals are alternative strategies to diminish iron deficiency. Animals and plants possess large ferritin complexes that accumulate, detoxify, or buffer excess cellular iron. However, the yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiaelacks ferritin and uses vacuoles as iron storage organelles. Here, we explored how soybean ferritin expression influenced yeast iron metabolism, confirming that yeasts that express soybean seed ferritin could be explored as a novel strategy to increase dietary iron absorption.


2012 ◽  
Vol 78 (11) ◽  
pp. 4008-4016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daisuke Watanabe ◽  
Yuya Araki ◽  
Yan Zhou ◽  
Naoki Maeya ◽  
Takeshi Akao ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTSake yeast cells have defective entry into the quiescent state, allowing them to sustain high fermentation rates. To reveal the underlying mechanism, we investigated the PAS kinase Rim15p, which orchestrates initiation of the quiescence program inSaccharomyces cerevisiae. We found that Rim15p is truncated at the carboxyl terminus in modern sake yeast strains as a result of a frameshift mutation. Introduction of this mutation or deletion of the full-lengthRIM15gene in a laboratory strain led to a defective stress response, decreased synthesis of the storage carbohydrates trehalose and glycogen, and impaired G1arrest, which together closely resemble the characteristic phenotypes of sake yeast. Notably, expression of a functionalRIM15gene in a modern sake strain suppressed all of these phenotypes, demonstrating that dysfunction of Rim15p prevents sake yeast cells from entering quiescence. Moreover, loss of Rim15p or its downstream targets Igo1p and Igo2p remarkably improved the fermentation rate in a laboratory strain. This finding verified that Rim15p-mediated entry into quiescence plays pivotal roles in the inhibition of ethanol fermentation. Taken together, our results suggest that the loss-of-function mutation in theRIM15gene may be the key genetic determinant of the increased ethanol production rates in modern sake yeast strains.


Author(s):  
M Lairón-Peris ◽  
S. J. Routledge ◽  
J. A. Linney ◽  
J Alonso-del-Real ◽  
C.M. Spickett ◽  
...  

Saccharomyces cerevisiae is an important unicellular yeast species within the biotechnological and food and beverage industries. A significant application of this species is the production of ethanol, where concentrations are limited by cellular toxicity, often at the level of the cell membrane. Here, we characterize 61 S. cerevisiae strains for ethanol tolerance and further analyse five representatives with varying ethanol tolerances. The most tolerant strain, AJ4, was dominant in co-culture at 0% and 10% ethanol. Unexpectedly, although it does not have the highest NIC or MIC, MY29 was the dominant strain in co-culture at 6% ethanol, which may be linked to differences in its basal lipidome. Whilst relatively few lipidomic differences were observed between strains, a significantly higher PE concentration was observed in the least tolerant strain, MY26, at 0% and 6% ethanol compared to the other strains that became more similar at 10%, indicating potential involvement of this lipid with ethanol sensitivity. Our findings reveal that AJ4 is best able to adapt its membrane to become more fluid in the presence of ethanol and lipid extracts from AJ4 also form the most permeable membranes. Furthermore, MY26 is least able to modulate fluidity in response to ethanol and membranes formed from extracted lipids are least leaky at physiological ethanol concentrations. Overall, these results reveal a potential mechanism of ethanol tolerance and suggests a limited set of membrane compositions that diverse yeast species use to achieve this. Importance Many microbial processes are not implemented at the industrial level because the product yield is poorer and more expensive than can be achieved by chemical synthesis. It is well established that microbes show stress responses during bioprocessing, and one reason for poor product output from cell factories is production conditions that are ultimately toxic to the cells. During fermentative processes, yeast cells encounter culture media with high sugar content, which is later transformed into high ethanol concentrations. Thus, ethanol toxicity is one of the major stresses in traditional and more recent biotechnological processes. We have performed a multilayer phenotypic and lipidomic characterization of a large number of industrial and environmental strains of Saccharomyces to identify key resistant and non-resistant isolates for future applications.


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