Characterization of promoter regions involved in high expression of KlCYC1

Carbon source dependent promoters in yeasts

Budding yeasts are important expression hosts for the production of recombinant proteins.

The choice of the right promoter is a crucial point for efficient gene expression, as most regulations take place at the transcriptional level. A wide and constantly increasing range of inducible, derepressed and constitutive promoters have been applied for gene expression in yeasts in the past; their different behaviours were a reflection of the different needs of individual processes.

Within this review we summarize the majority of the large available set of carbon source dependent promoters for protein expression in yeasts, either induced or derepressed by the particular carbon source provided. We examined the most common derepressed promoters for Saccharomyces cerevisiae and other yeasts, and described carbon source inducible promoters and promoters induced by non-sugar carbon sources. A special focus is given to promoters that are activated as soon as glucose is depleted, since such promoters can be very effective and offer an uncomplicated and scalable cultivation procedure.

Regulatory factors controlling transcription of Saccharomyces cerevisiae IXR1 by oxygen levels: a model of transcriptional adaptation from aerobiosis to hypoxia implicating ROX1 and IXR1 cross-regulation

Ixr1p from Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been previously studied because it binds to DNA containing intrastrand cross-links formed by the anticancer drug cisplatin. Ixr1p is also a transcriptional regulator of anaerobic/hypoxic genes, such as SRP1/TIR1, which encodes a stress-response cell wall manoprotein, and COX5B, which encodes the Vb subunit of the mitochondrial complex cytochrome c oxidase. However, factors controlling IXR1 expression remained unexplored. In the present study we show that IXR1 mRNA levels are controlled by oxygen availability and increase during hypoxia. In aerobiosis, low levels of IXR1 expression are maintained by Rox1p repression through the general co-repressor complex Tup1-Ssn6. Ixr1p itself is necessary for full IXR1 expression under hypoxic conditions. Deletion analyses have identified the region in the IXR1 promoter responsible for this positive auto-control (nucleotides -557 to -376). EMSA (electrophoretic mobility-shift assay) and ChIP (chromatin immunoprecipitation) assays show that Ixr1p binds to the IXR1 promoter both in vitro and in vivo. Ixr1p is also required for hypoxic repression of ROX1 and binds to its promoter. UPC2 deletion has opposite effects on IXR1 and ROX1 transcription during hypoxia. Ixr1p is also necessary for resistance to oxidative stress generated by H2O2. IXR1 expression is moderately activated by H2O2 and this induction is Yap1p-dependent. A model of IXR1 regulation as a relay for sensing different signals related to change in oxygen availability is proposed. In this model, transcriptional adaptation from aerobiosis to hypoxia depends on ROX1 and IXR1 cross-regulation.

A functional analysis ofKlSRB10: implications inKluyveromyces lactis transcriptional regulation

The function of KlSRB10 has been studied by diverse approaches. Primer extension analysis reveals several transcription start sites, position - 17 from ATG being predominant. Deletion of KlSRB10 diminishes growth in ethanol and decreases KlCYC1 transcript levels. A second phenotype associated with this deletion affects growth in galactose. These phenotypes are independent of the specific sequence connecting the ATP binding cassette and the kinase domain of Srb10p in yeasts. KlSrb10p is not necessary for LAC4 repression mediated by KlGal80p, as deduced by construction of a Klgal80Deltasrb10Delta double mutant. In the two-hybrid system, KlSrbp10p interacts with the protein encoded by KLLA0E08151g (KlSrbp11p).

TheKluyveromyces lactisrepertoire of transcriptional regulators

We have exploited the recently obtained complete genome sequence of Kluyveromyces lactis to compare the repertoire of transcriptional regulators between K. lactis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Looking for similarities with the S. cerevisiae proteins of this functional class, we observed a reduction in gene number, which is not randomly distributed among the different DNA-binding classes, the zinc binuclear cluster class (Zn(II)2Cys6), specific to ascomycetes, being one of the most affected. However, when one examines the number of proteins that, in the K. lactis genome, possess the different DNA-binding signatures, it is not reduced compared to S. cerevisiae. This indicates that transactivator proteins have strongly diverged between the two species and cannot be recognized any more, and/or that each genome has developed a specific set of regulators to adapt the cell to its specific niches. These two aspects are discussed on the basis of available data.

Respirofermentative metabolism in Kluyveromyces lactis: Insights and perspectives

Yeasts do not form a homogeneous group as far as energy-yielding metabolism is concerned and the fate of pyruvate, a glycolytic intermediate, determines the type of energy metabolism. Kluyveromyces lactis has become an alternative to the traditional yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae owing to its industrial applications as well as to studies on mitochondrial respiration. In this review we summarize the current knowdeledge about the K. lactis respirofermentative metabolism, taking into account the respiratory capacity of this yeast and the molecular mechanisms controlling its regulation, giving an up-to-date picture.

Updated map of duplicated regions in the yeast genome

We have updated the map of duplicated chromosomal segments in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae genome originally published by Wolfe and Shields in 1997 (Nature 387, 708-713). The new analysis is based on the more sensitive Smith Waterman search method instead of BLAST. The parameters used to identify duplicated chromosomal regions were optimized such as to maximize the amount of the genome placed into paired regions, under the assumption that the hypothesis that the entire genome was duplicated in a single event is correct. The core of the new map, with 52 pairs of regions containing three or more duplicated genes, is largely unchanged from our original map. 39 tRNA gene pairs and one snRNA pair have been added. To find additional pairs of genes that may have been formed by whole genome duplication, we searched through the parts of the genome that are not covered by this core map, looking for putative duplicated chromosomal regions containing only two duplicate genes instead of three, or having lower-scoring gene pairs. This approach identified a further 32 candidate paired regions, bringing the total number of protein-coding genes on the duplication map to 905 (16% of the proteome). The updated map suggests that a second copy of the ribosomal DNA array has been deleted from chromosome IV.