This project will examine the coordination of cellular events during gametogenesis. During gamete formation, cells must coordinate the complex events that occur during meiosis and gamete differentiation. Meiosis involves the cellular events that occur as cells undergo the reductional divisions necessary to create haploid nuclei from a diploid cell. Gamete formation requires extensive changes to cell morphology, and these morphological changes must be coordinated with meiosis as cells differentiate. In the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, gametogenesis occurs through the process of sporulation. During sporulation, meiotic cytokinesis involves the formation of the prospore membrane, which grows to surround and eventually enclose the meiotic nucleus; eventually, the prospore membrane becomes the plasma membrane of the newly formed cells. Our long-term goal is to understand prospore membrane development in order to gain fundamental knowledge about how complex cellular events are coordinated. Because the prospore membrane is critical for the life cycle of fungal pathogens, these studies may also provide insights into fungal-specific mechanisms that can be targeted to combat pathogens that cause human disease. Our previous studies show that timely closure of the prospore membrane requires the STE20 GC family kinase encoded by SPS1, which acts with SPO77 and in parallel to AMA1 (which encodes the meiotic activator of the anaphase promoting complex). We found that SPS1 acts to regulate prospore membrane closure through the PI(4,5) binding protein Ssp1, affecting the stability and phosphorylation of Ssp1. Experiments in this proposal extend our previous work, focusing on how prospore membrane closure is coordinated.
Aim 1 examines genes known to act in prospore membrane closure and analyzes their relationship with regulators of meiosis.
Aim 2 seeks to more broadly examine the relationship between PSM closure and the cellular events occurring during meiotic exit.
The formation of gametes (gametogenesis) is important for all sexually reproducing species. This proposal examines the coordination of meiosis with germ cell differentiation using the budding yeast as a model. These studies will to contribute fundamental knowledge about how gametes are formed, contribute to our understanding of how the timely completion of cellular events are coordinated, and may provide insights into fungal-specific mechanisms that can be targeted to fight human fungal pathogens.
| Paulissen, Scott M; Slubowski, Christian J; Roesner, Joseph M et al. (2016) Timely Closure of the Prospore Membrane Requires SPS1 and SPO77 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Genetics 203:1203-16 |
| Paulissen, Scott M; Huang, Linda S (2016) Efficient Sporulation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in a 96 Multiwell Format. J Vis Exp : |
| Slubowski, Christian J; Funk, Alyssa D; Roesner, Joseph M et al. (2015) Plasmids for C-terminal tagging in Saccharomyces cerevisiae that contain improved GFP proteins, Envy and Ivy. Yeast 32:379-87 |
| Parodi, Emily M; Roesner, Joseph M; Huang, Linda S (2015) SPO73 and SPO71 Function Cooperatively in Prospore Membrane Elongation During Sporulation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. PLoS One 10:e0143571 |
| Parodi, Emily M; Baker, Crystal S; Tetzlaff, Cayla et al. (2012) SPO71 mediates prospore membrane size and maturation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Eukaryot Cell 11:1191-200 |
