The roles of PUT3, URE2, and GLN3 regulatory proteins in the proline utilization pathway of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

1995 ◽  
Vol 73 (S1) ◽  
pp. 153-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marjorie C. Brandriss ◽  
Darlene A. Falvey ◽  
Shelley Ann G. des Etages ◽  
Shiwei Xu

The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae can use alternative nitrogen sources such as allantoin, urea, γ-aminobutyrate, or proline when preferred nitrogen sources such as asparagine, glutamine, or ammonium ions are unavailable in the environment. To use proline as the sole nitrogen source, cells must activate the expression of the proline transporters and the genes that encode the catabolic enzymes proline oxidase (PUT1) and Δ1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate dehydrogenase (PUT2). Transcriptional activation of the PUT genes requires the PUT3 regulatory protein, proline, and relief from nitrogen repression. PUT3 is a 979 amino acid protein that binds a short DNA sequence in the promoters of PUT1 and PUT2, independent of the presence of proline. The functional domains of PUT3 have been studied by biochemical and molecular tests and analysis of activator-constitutive and activator-defective mutant proteins. Mutations in the URE2 gene relieve nitrogen repression, permitting inducer-independent transcription of the PUT genes in the presence of repressing nitrogen sources. The GLN3 protein that activates the expression of many genes in alternative nitrogen source pathways is not required for the expression of the PUT genes under inducing, derepressing conditions (proline) or noninducing, repressing conditions (ammonia). Although it has been speculated that the URE2 protein antagonizes the action of GLN3 in the regulation of many nitrogen assimilatory pathways, URE2 appears to act independently of GLN3 in the proline-utilization pathway. Key words: Saccharomyces cerevisiae, proline utilization, nitrogen repression.

1995 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 2321-2330 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Xu ◽  
D A Falvey ◽  
M C Brandriss

The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae can use alternative nitrogen sources such as arginine, urea, allantoin, gamma-aminobutyrate, or proline when preferred nitrogen sources like glutamine, asparagine, or ammonium ions are unavailable in the environment. Utilization of alternative nitrogen sources requires the relief of nitrogen repression and induction of specific permeases and enzymes. The products of the GLN3 and URE2 genes are required for the appropriate transcription of many genes in alternative nitrogen assimilatory pathways. GLN3 appears to activate their transcription when good nitrogen sources are unavailable, and URE2 appears to repress their transcription when alternative nitrogen sources are not needed. The participation of nitrogen repression and the regulators GLN3 and URE2 in the proline utilization pathway was evaluated in this study. Comparison of PUT gene expression in cells grown in repressing or derepressing nitrogen sources, in the absence of the inducer proline, indicated that both PUT1 and PUT2 are regulated by nitrogen repression, although the effect on PUT2 is comparatively small. Recessive mutations in URE2 elevated expression of the PUT1 and PUT2 genes 5- to 10-fold when cells were grown on a nitrogen-repressing medium. Although PUT3, the proline utilization pathway transcriptional activator, is absolutely required for growth on proline as the sole nitrogen source, a put3 ure2 strain had somewhat elevated PUT gene expression, suggesting an effect of the ure2 mutation in the absence of the PUT3 product. PUT1 and PUT2 gene expression did not require the GLN3 activator protein for expression under either repressing or derepressing conditions. Therefore, regulation of the PUT genes by URE2 does not require a functional GLN3 protein. The effect of the ure2 mutation on the PUT genes is not due to increased internal proline levels. URE2 repression appears to be limited to nitrogen assimilatory systems and does not affect genes involved in carbon, inositol, or phosphate metabolism or in mating-type control and sporulation.


Genetics ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 142 (4) ◽  
pp. 1069-1082
Author(s):  
Shelley Ann G des Etages ◽  
Darlene A Fahey ◽  
Richard J Reece ◽  
Marjorie C Brandriss

Abstract Proline can serve as a nitrogen source for the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae when preferred sources of nitrogen are absent from the growth medium. PUT3, the activator of the proline utilization pathway, is required for the transcription of the genes encoding the enzymes that convert proline to glutamate. PUT3 is a 979 amino acid protein that constitutively binds a short DNA sequence in the promoters of its target genes, but does not activate their expression in the absence of induction by proline and in the presence of preferred sources of nitrogen. To understand how PUT3 is converted from an inactive to an active state, a dissection of its functional domains has been undertaken. Biochemical and molecular tests, domain swapping experiments, and an analysis of activator-constitutive and activator-defective mutant proteins indicate that PUT3 is dimeric and activates transcription with its negatively charged carboxyterminus, which does not appear to contain a proline-responsive domain. A mutation in the conserved central domain found in many fungal activators interferes with activation without affecting DNA binding or protein stability. Intragenic suppressors of the central domain mutation have been isolated and analyzed.


2000 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 892-899 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hoching L. Huang ◽  
Marjorie C. Brandriss

ABSTRACT The proline utilization pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is regulated by the Put3p transcriptional activator in response to the presence of the inducer proline and the quality of the nitrogen source in the growth medium. Put3p is constitutively bound to the promoters of its target genes, PUT1 andPUT2, under all conditions studied but activates transcription to the maximum extent only in the absence of rich nitrogen sources and in the presence of proline (i.e., when proline serves as the sole source of nitrogen). Changes in target gene expression therefore occur through changes in the activity of the DNA-bound regulator. In this report, we demonstrate by phosphatase treatment of immunoprecipitates of extracts metabolically labeled with32P or 35S that Put3p is a phosphoprotein. Examination of Put3p isolated from cells grown on a variety of nitrogen sources showed that it was differentially phosphorylated as a function of the quality of the nitrogen source: the poorer the nitrogen source, the slower the gel migration of the phosphoforms. The presence of the inducer does not detectably alter the phosphorylation profile. Activator-defective and activator-constitutive Put3p mutants have been analyzed. One activator-defective mutant appears to be phosphorylated in a pattern similar to that of the wild type, thus separating its ability to be phosphorylated from its ability to activate transcription. Three activator-constitutive mutant proteins from cells grown on an ammonia-containing medium have a phosphorylation profile similar to that of the wild-type protein in cells grown on proline. These results demonstrate a correlation between the phosphorylation status of Put3p and its ability to activate its target genes and suggest that there are two signals, proline induction and quality of nitrogen source, impinging on Put3p that act synergistically for maximum expression of the proline utilization pathway.


Genetics ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 117 (3) ◽  
pp. 429-435
Author(s):  
Marjorie C Brandriss

ABSTRACT A mutation has been identified that prevents Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells from growing on proline as the sole source of nitrogen, causes noninducible expression of the PUT1 and PUT2 genes, and is completely recessive. In the put3-75 mutant, the basal level of expression (ammonia as nitrogen source) of PUT1-lacZ and PUT2-lacZ gene fusions as measured by β-galactosidase activity is reduced 4- and 7-fold, respectively, compared with the wild-type strain. Normal regulation is not restored when the cells are grown on arginine as the sole nitrogen source and put3-75 cells remain sensitive to the proline analog, l-azetidine-2-carboxylic acid, indicating that the block is not at the level of transport of the inducer, proline. In a cross between the put3-75 strain and the semidominant, constitutive mutation PUT3c-68, only parental ditype tetrads were found, indicating allelism of the two mutations. Further support for allelism derives from the comparison of enzyme levels in heteroallelic and heterozygous diploid strains. The constitutive allele appears to be fully dominant to the noninducible allele but only partially dominant to the wild type, suggesting an interaction between the wild-type and PUT3c-68 gene products. The PUT3 gene maps on chromosome XI, about 5.7 cM from the centromere. The phenotypes of alleles of the PUT3 gene, either recessive and noninducible (the put3-75 phenotype) or semidominant and constitutive (the PUT3c-68 phenotype), and their pleiotropy suggest that the PUT3 gene product is a positive activator of the proline utilization pathway.


1998 ◽  
Vol 64 (10) ◽  
pp. 3831-3837 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Michel Salmon ◽  
Pierre Barre

ABSTRACT Metabolism of nitrogen compounds by yeasts affects the efficiency of wine fermentation. Ammonium ions, normally present in grape musts, reduce catabolic enzyme levels and transport activities for nonpreferred nitrogen sources. This nitrogen catabolite repression severely impairs the utilization of proline and arginine, both common nitrogen sources in grape juice that require the proline utilization pathway for their assimilation. We attempted to improve fermentation performance by genetic alteration of the regulation of nitrogen-assimilatory pathways in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. One mutant carrying a recessive allele ofure2 was isolated from an industrial S. cerevisiae strain. This mutation strongly deregulated the proline utilization pathway. Fermentation kinetics of this mutant were studied under enological conditions on simulated standard grape juices with various nitrogen levels. Mutant strains produced more biomass and exhibited a higher maximum CO2 production rate than the wild type. These differences were primarily due to the derepression of amino acid utilization pathways. When low amounts of dissolved oxygen were added, the mutants could assimilate proline. Biomass yield and fermentation rate were consequently increased, and the duration of the fermentation was substantially shortened. S. cerevisiae strains lacking URE2 function could improve alcoholic fermentation of natural media where proline and other poorly assimilated amino acids are the major potential nitrogen source, as is the case for most fruit juices and grape musts.


1997 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 4282-4293 ◽  
Author(s):  
A M Marini ◽  
S Soussi-Boudekou ◽  
S Vissers ◽  
B Andre

Ammonium is a nitrogen source supporting growth of yeast cells at an optimal rate. We recently reported the first characterization of an NH4+ transport protein (Mep1p) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Here we describe the characterization of two additional NH4+ transporters, Mep2p and Mep3p, both of which are highly similar to Mep1p. The Mep2 protein displays the highest affinity for NH4+ (Km, 1 to 2 microM), followed closely by Mep1p (Km, 5 to 10 microM) and finally by Mep3p, whose affinity is much lower (Km, approximately 1.4 to 2.1 mM). A strain lacking all three MEP genes cannot grow on media containing less than 5 mM NH4+ as the sole nitrogen source, while the presence of individual NH4+ transporters enables growth on these media. Yet, the three Mep proteins are not essential for growth on NH4+ at high concentrations (>20 mM). Feeding experiments further indicate that the Mep transporters are also required to retain NH4+ inside cells during growth on at least some nitrogen sources other than NH4+. The MEP genes are subject to nitrogen control. In the presence of a good nitrogen source, all three MEP genes are repressed. On a poor nitrogen source, MEP2 expression is much higher than MEP1 and MEP3 expression. High-level MEP2 transcription requires at least one of the two GATA family factors Gln3p and Nil1p, which are involved in transcriptional activation of many other nitrogen-regulated genes. In contrast, expression of either MEP1 or MEP3 requires only Gln3p and is unexpectedly down-regulated in a Nil1p-dependent manner. Analysis of databases suggests that families of NH4+ transporters exist in other organisms as well.


1989 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 442-451
Author(s):  
M Nishizawa ◽  
R Araki ◽  
Y Teranishi

To clarify carbon source-dependent control of the glycolytic pathway in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, we have initiated a study of transcriptional regulation of the pyruvate kinase gene (PYK). By deletion analysis of the 5'-noncoding region of the PYK gene, we have identified an upstream activating sequence (UASPYK1) located between 634 and 653 nucleotides upstream of the initiating ATG codon. The promoter activity of the PYK 5'-noncoding region was abolished when the sequence containing the UASPYK1 was deleted from the region. Synthetic UASPYK1 (26mer), in either orientation, was able to restore the transcriptional activity of UAS-depleted mutants when placed upstream of the TATA sequence located at -199 (ATG as +1). While the UASPYK1 was required for basal to intermediate levels of transcriptional activation, a sequence between -714 and -811 was found to be necessary for full activation. On the other hand, a sequence between -344 and -468 was found to be responsible for transcriptional repression of the PYK gene when yeast cells were grown on nonfermentable carbon sources. This upstream repressible sequence also repressed transcription, although to a lesser extent, when glucose was present in the medium. The possible mechanism for carbon source-dependent regulation of PYK expression through these cis-acting regulatory elements is discussed.


1997 ◽  
Vol 17 (11) ◽  
pp. 6410-6418 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Pi ◽  
C T Chien ◽  
S Fields

In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Ste12p induces transcription of pheromone-responsive genes by binding to a DNA sequence designated the pheromone response element. We generated a series of hybrid proteins of Ste12p with the DNA-binding and activation domains of the transcriptional activator Gal4p to define a pheromone induction domain of Ste12p sufficient to mediate pheromone-induced transcription by these hybrid proteins. A minimal pheromone induction domain, delineated as residues 301 to 335 of Ste12p, is dependent on the pheromone mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase pathway for induction activity. Mutation of the three serine and threonine residues within the minimal pheromone induction domain did not affect transcriptional induction, indicating that the activity of this domain is not directly regulated by MAP kinase phosphorylation. By contrast, mutation of the two tyrosines or their preceding acidic residues led to a high level of transcriptional activity in the absence of pheromone and consequently to the loss of pheromone induction. This constitutively high activity was not affected by mutations in the MAP kinase cascade, suggesting that the function of the pheromone induction domain is normally repressed in the absence of pheromone. By two-hybrid analysis, this minimal domain interacts with two negative regulators, Dig1p and Dig2p (also designated Rst1p and Rst2p), and the interaction is abolished by mutation of the tyrosines. The pheromone induction domain itself has weak and inducible transcriptional activity, and its ability to potentiate transcription depends on the activity of an adjacent activation domain. These results suggest that the pheromone induction domain of Ste12p mediates transcriptional induction via a two-step process: the relief of repression and synergistic transcriptional activation with another activation domain.


1980 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. 108-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
C J Rivin ◽  
W L Fangman

When the growth rate of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is limited with various nitrogen sources, the duration of the S phase is proportional to cell cycle length over a fourfold range of growth rates (C.J. Rivin and W. L. Fangman, 1980, J. Cell Biol. 85:96-107). Molecular parameters of the S phases of these cells were examined by DNA fiber autoradiography. Changes in replication fork rate account completely for the changes in S-phase duration. No changes in origin-to-origin distances were detected. In addition, it was found that while most adjacent replication origins are activated within a few minutes of each other, new activations occur throughout the S phase.


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