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Involvement of yeast YOL151W / GRE2 in ergosterol metabolism
Author(s) -
Warringer Jonas,
Blomberg Anders
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
yeast
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.923
H-Index - 102
eISSN - 1097-0061
pISSN - 0749-503X
DOI - 10.1002/yea.1363
Subject(s) - ergosterol , biology , yeast , saccharomyces cerevisiae , phenotype , biochemistry , lipid metabolism , mutant , gene expression , enzyme , metabolism , secondary metabolism , gene , biosynthesis , microbiology and biotechnology
The Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene YOL151W / GRE2 is widely used as a model gene in studies on yeast regulatory responses to osmotic and oxidative stress. Nevertheless, information concerning the physiological role of this enzyme, a distant homologue of mammalian 3‐β‐hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases, is scarce. Combining quantitative phenotypic profiling and protein expression analysis studies, we here report the involvement of yeast Gre2p in ergosterol metabolism. Growth was significantly and exclusively reduced in gre2 Δ strains subjected to environmental stress straining the cell membrane. Furthermore, whereas no compensatory mechanisms were activated due to loss of Gre2p during growth in favourable conditions (synthetic defined media, no stress), a striking and highly specific induction of the ergosterol biosynthesis pathway, represented by the enzymes Erg10p, Erg19p and Erg6p, was observed in gre2 Δ during growth in a stress condition in which lack of Gre2p significantly affects growth. Involvement of Gre2p in ergosterol metabolism was confirmed by application of an array of selective inhibitors of lipid biosynthesis, as gre2 Δ displayed vastly impaired tolerance exclusively to agents targeting the ergosterol biosynthesis. The approach outlined here, combining broad‐spectrum phenotypic profiling, expression analysis during conditions reducing the growth of the mutant and functional confirmation by application of highly selective inhibitors, may prove a valuable tool in gene functional analysis. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.