Research, Research Articles
Overexpression of the transcription factor Yap1 modifies intracellular redox conditions and enhances recombinant protein secretion
Marizela Delic1,2, Alexandra B. Graf2,3, Gunda Koellensperger1,4, Christina Haberhauer-Troyer1,4, Stephan Hann1,4, Diethard Mattanovich1,2, Brigitte Gasser1,2
This article investigates the role of Yap1 during the production of recombinant secretory proteins in glucose based growth conditions in Pichia pastoris, and reports a novel role of Yap1 during ER-resident oxidative protein folding.
Functional analysis of lipid metabolism genes in wine yeasts during alcoholic fermentation at low temperature
María López-Malo1,2, Estéfani García-Ríos1, Rosana Chiva1 and José Manuel Guillamon1
This study confirms the importance of specific genes in growth and fermentation activity of Saccharomyces cerevisiae at low temperature.
Angiotensin II type 1 receptor blockers increase tolerance of cells to copper and cisplatin
Pieter Spincemaille1,+, Gursimran Chandhok2,+, Andree Zibert2, Hartmut Schmidt2, Jef Verbeek3, Patrick Chaltin4,5, Bruno P.A. Cammue1,6,#, David Cassiman3, Karin Thevissen1,#
This study reports the identification of the drug class of Angiotensin II Type 1 receptor blockers (ARBs) and shows that specific ARBs increase yeast tolerance to Cu and Cp, and affect markers of Cu-induced apoptosis. Likewise, this study finds that specific ARBs increase human cell line tolerance to Cu and decrease the prevalence of apoptotic markers.
An extensive endoplasmic reticulum-localised glycoprotein family in trypanosomatids
Harriet Allison1, Amanda J. O’Reilly1, Jeremy Sternberg2 and Mark C. Field1
This work describes a novel family of type I membrane proteins ("invariant glycoproteins") and proposes them as trypanosomatid-specific ER-localised glycoproteins, with potential contributions to life cycle progression and immunity, that utilise oligomerisation as an ER retention mechanism.
Time resolved DNA occupancy dynamics during the respiratory oscillation uncover a global reset point in the yeast growth program
Cornelia Amariei, Rainer Machné, Viktor Stolc, Tomoyoshi Soga, Masaru Tomita and Douglas B. Murray
Using multiple approaches, this work implies a nucleosome focusing event as a key step that resets transcription during the respiratory oscillation.
Cell wall dynamics modulate acetic acid-induced apoptotic cell death of Saccharomyces cerevisiae
António Rego#, Ana Marta Duarte#, Flávio Azevedo#, Maria João Sousa, Manuela Côrte-Real and Susana R. Chaves
This work characterizes the involvement of MAPK signaling pathways in cell death induced by acetic acid in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
Extracellular calcium triggers unique transcriptional programs and modulates staurosporine-induced cell death in Neurospora crassa
A. Pedro Gonçalves1,2, João Monteiro2, Chiara Lucchi2, David J. Kowbel3, J. Miguel Cordeiro1,4, Paulo Correia-de-Sá1,4, Daniel J. Rigden5, N. Louise Glass3, Arnaldo Videira1,2
The results presented here reveal that in Neurospora crassa, extracellular Ca2+ modulates cell death and the transcriptional alterations induced by staurosporine, and lead to the identification of two novel putative Ca2+-binding proteins, encoded by the NCU08524 and NCU06607 genes.
Multiple metabolic requirements for size homeostasis and initiation of division in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Shivatheja Soma, Kailu Yang, Maria I. Morales and Michael Polymenis
This article reveals an unexpected diversity in the G1 cell cycle phenotypes of metabolic and biosynthetic Saccharomyces cerevisiae mutants, suggesting that growth requirements for cell division are multiple, distinct and imposed throughout the G1 phase of the cell cycle.
Exogenous addition of histidine reduces copper availability in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Daisuke Watanabe, Rie Kikushima, Miho Aitoku, Akira Nishimura, Iwao Ohtsu, Ryo Nasuno, and Hiroshi Takagi
The herein presented results indicate that in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, histidine cytotoxicity is associated with low copper availability inside cells, not with impaired copper uptake. Furthermore, it suggests that histidine cytotoxicity is involved in deficiency of mitochondrial copper.
Dry biocleaning of artwork: an innovative methodology for Cultural Heritage recovery?
April 15, 2021
This work proposes an innovative methodology based on applied biotechnology for the recovery of altered stonework: the "dry biocleaning", which envisages the use of dehydrated microbial cells without the use of free water or gel-based matrices.
Aeration mitigates endoplasmic reticulum stress in Saccharomyces cerevisiae even without mitochondrial respiration
March 31, 2021
This work demonstrates a scenario, in which aeration acts beneficially on Saccharmyces cerevisiae cells even under fermentative conditions.
Nutrient sensing and cAMP signaling in yeast: G-protein coupled receptor versus transceptor activation of PKA
October 12, 2020
The herein presented work supports a model, in which nutrient transceptors are evolutionary ancestors of GPCRs, employing a more primitive direct signaling mechanism compared to the indirect cAMP second-messenger signaling mechanism used by GPCRs for activation of PKA.
Novobiocin inhibits membrane synthesis and vacuole formation of Enterococcus faecalis protoplasts
August 10, 2020
In this study Tsuchikado et al. show that DNA replication is crucial for plasma membrane biosynthesis and vacuole formation in Enterococcus faecalis protoplasts. Novobiocin inhibits DNA replication, blocking cell enlargement and vacuole formation. Extended treatment prevents re-enlargement after removal.
Variants of the human RAD52 gene confer defects in ionizing radiation resistance and homologous recombination repair in budding yeast
July 20, 2020
RAD52 is a key protein in DNA repair and suppresses DNA damage in yeast; however, certain variants affecting BRCA2 mutations fail to correct HRR defects. This suggests that HsRAD52 aids multiple DNA repair mechanisms and could be targeted for use in treating BRCA2-deficient cancers.
Histone H3E73Q and H4E53A mutations cause recombinogenic DNA damage
April 24, 2020
This study reveals that conserved residues H3E73 and H4E53 in histones H3 and H4 play a crucial role in maintaining genome stability. Mutations at these sites increase recombinogenic DNA damage, likely due to replication-associated issues rather than transcriptional activity, highlighting their importance in DNA damage prevention and repair.
Broad-spectrum antifungal activities and mechanism of drimane sesquiterpenoids
March 12, 2020
This study identifies (-)-drimenol as a potent broad-spectrum antifungal agent effective against multiple pathogenic fungi, including drug-resistant strains, and reveals its mechanism of action involves disruption of fungal membranes and targeting Crk1-related pathways, with potential for structural optimization to enhance efficacy.
Stable and destabilized GFP reporters to monitor calcineurin activity in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
February 5, 2020
This study introduces GFP-based transcriptional reporters driven by a calcineurin-dependent response element, enabling real-time monitoring of calcineurin activity in live yeast cells for studying stress responses, aging, and antifungal drug screening.
The euchromatic histone mark H3K36me3 preserves heterochromatin through sequestration of an acetyltransferase complex in fission yeast
January 3, 2020
This study reveals that the loss of heterochromatin silencing in Set2-deficient cells is due to unrestrained Mst2C activity, highlighting the need for spatially restricted chromatin-modifying enzymes to maintain distinct chromatin states.