Our long-term objectives are to define the pathway by which two haploid yeast cells fuse to become one diploid cell. Related to fertilization, conjugation is a fundamental process common to all sexually reproducing organisms. Conjugation also has close parallels to cell fusion events during development. We propose to continue our analysis of genes required for two major steps in conjugation, cell fusion and nuclear envelope fusion. Many of the genes required for cell and nuclear fusion have homologs in all eukaryotic organisms and their study will provide important clues to human cell biology, fertility and disease. During development of multicellular organisms, cells transition from a proliferative state, devoted to cell division and lacking specialized functions, to a differentiated state, in which cell division ceases and specialized cell functions are expressed. Proliferation and differentiation are mutually exclusive states, and orderly development requires that cells shut down mitotic functions as they turn on the specialized functions related to differentiation. Indeed one hallmark of cancer is that cells tend to lose differentiated functions as they re- acquire the capacity for unrestrained proliferation. Thus the coordination of mitosis and differentiation is of vital importance. Similarly, when yeast cells conjugate, they must exit the cell cycle and express proteins required for cell and nuclear fusion. However, because gene expression begins before the completion of the previous cell cycle, and because several proteins required for conjugation have other mitotic functions, yeast cells face the additional challenge of having to prevent premature activation of conjugation. The major goal of this project is to identify the specific effects of premature activation of mating functions, and identify the genes/proteins that are toxic when prematurely activated. As a specific example, we aim to understand the controls governing a key regulator of cell fusion, Fus2p, whose localization is under extraordinarily complex regulation by both the cell cycle and conjugation. Fus2p's regulation therefore serves as a central paradigm for the transition between mitosis and conjugation. We hypothesize that the regulation of Fus2p localization prevents interference with cell-cycle completion, which we will test this by identifying the downstream pathways regulated by Fus2p. We will examine the behavior of other key proteins co-opted during mating to determine if regulated localization is a general mechanism to prevent cell-cycle interference,. At the culmination of conjugation, the two nuclear envelopes fuse to create a single diploid nucleus. Because the nuclear envelope is composed of two membranes, two distinct fusion events occur in a coordinated fashion, and fusion of the inner membranes must be catalyzed by as yet unknown proteins. We hypothesize that Kar5p, a novel conjugation-induced protein, couples the inner and outer nuclear envelopes during fusion and facilitates inner-membrane fusion. Nuclear envelope fusion may be excellent paradigm for ER remodeling, an example of a critical mitotic process co-opted to serve a different function during conjugation. Public Health Relevance: As organisms grow and develop their cells transition from proliferation, when they are dividing, but lack specialized functions, to differentiation, when cell division stops and they acquire specialized functions. Successful development requires that cells not turn on the specialized functions while they are trying divide;one hallmark of cancer is that cells lose their specialized functions as they regain the capacity for unrestrained division. This project addresses the same problem in a model organism, baker's yeast, which carefully regulates the transition from cell division to being able to mate, using genes similar to human genes with relevance to human cell biology, fertility and disease.

Public Health Relevance

As organisms grow and develop their cells transition from proliferation, when they are dividing, but lack specialized functions, to differentiation, when cell division stops and they acquire specialized functions. Successful development requires that cells not turn on the specialized functions while they are trying divide;one hallmark of cancer is that cells lose their specialized functions as they regain the capacity for unrestrained division. This project addresses the same problem in a model organism, baker's yeast, which carefully regulates the transition from cell division to being able to mate, using genes similar to human genes with relevance to human cell biology, fertility and disease.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01GM037739-23
Application #
7741751
Study Section
Nuclear Dynamics and Transport (NDT)
Program Officer
Gindhart, Joseph G
Project Start
1986-12-01
Project End
2012-12-31
Budget Start
2010-01-01
Budget End
2010-12-31
Support Year
23
Fiscal Year
2010
Total Cost
$517,333
Indirect Cost
Name
Princeton University
Department
Biochemistry
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
002484665
City
Princeton
State
NJ
Country
United States
Zip Code
08544
Matheson, Kinnari; Parsons, Lance; Gammie, Alison (2017) Whole-Genome Sequence and Variant Analysis of W303, a Widely-Used Strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. G3 (Bethesda) 7:2219-2226
Smith, Jean A; Hall, Allison E; Rose, Mark D (2017) Membrane curvature directs the localization of Cdc42p to novel foci required for cell-cell fusion. J Cell Biol 216:3971-3980
Melloy, Patricia G; Rose, Mark D (2017) Influence of the bud neck on nuclear envelope fission in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Exp Cell Res 358:390-396
Smith, Jean A; Rose, Mark D (2016) Kel1p Mediates Yeast Cell Fusion Through a Fus2p- and Cdc42p-Dependent Mechanism. Genetics 202:1421-35
Haye, Joanna E; Gammie, Alison E (2015) The Eukaryotic Mismatch Recognition Complexes Track with the Replisome during DNA Synthesis. PLoS Genet 11:e1005719
Stein, Richard A; Smith, Jean A; Rose, Mark D (2015) An Amphiphysin-Like Domain in Fus2p Is Required for Rvs161p Interaction and Cortical Localization. G3 (Bethesda) 6:337-49
Ojini, Irene; Gammie, Alison (2015) Rapid Identification of Chemoresistance Mechanisms Using Yeast DNA Mismatch Repair Mutants. G3 (Bethesda) 5:1925-35
Kim, Junwon; Rose, Mark D (2015) Stable Pseudohyphal Growth in Budding Yeast Induced by Synergism between Septin Defects and Altered MAP-kinase Signaling. PLoS Genet 11:e1005684
Rogers, Jason V; Rose, Mark D (2014) Kar5p is required for multiple functions in both inner and outer nuclear envelope fusion in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. G3 (Bethesda) 5:111-21
Rogers, Jason V; McMahon, Conor; Baryshnikova, Anastasia et al. (2014) ER-associated retrograde SNAREs and the Dsl1 complex mediate an alternative, Sey1p-independent homotypic ER fusion pathway. Mol Biol Cell 25:3401-12

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