High-resolution yeast quiescence profiling in human-like media reveals complex influences of auxotrophy and nutrient availability

Mind your marker: the effect of common auxotrophic markers on complex traits in yeast

Yeast cells are extensively used as a key model organism owing to their highly conserved genome, metabolic pathways, and cell biology processes. To assist in genetic engineering and analysis, laboratory yeast strains typically harbor auxotrophic selection markers. When uncompensated, auxotrophic markers cause significant phenotypic bias compared to prototrophic strains and have different combinatorial influences on the metabolic network. Here, we used BY4741, a laboratory strain commonly used as a "wild type" strain in yeast studies, to generate a set of revertant strains, containing all possible combinations of four common auxotrophic markers (leu2∆, ura3∆, his3∆1, met15∆). We examined the effect of the auxotrophic combinations on complex phenotypes such as resistance to rapamycin, acetic acid, and ethanol. Among the markers, we found that leucine auxotrophy most significantly affected the phenotype. We analyzed the phenotypic bias caused by auxotrophy at the genomic level using a prototrophic version of a genome-wide deletion library and a decreased mRNA perturbation (DAmP) library. Prototrophy was found to suppress rapamycin sensitivity in many mutants previously annotated for the phenotype, raising a possible need for reevaluation of the findings in a native metabolic context. These results reveal a significant phenotypic bias caused by common auxotrophic markers and support the use of prototrophic wild-type strains in yeast research.

A Systematic Review on Quiescent State Research Approaches in S. cerevisiae

Quiescence, the temporary and reversible arrest of cell growth, is a fundamental biological process. However, the lack of standardization in terms of reporting the experimental details of quiescent cells and populations can cause confusion and hinder knowledge transfer. We employ the systematic review methodology to comprehensively analyze the diversity of approaches used to study the quiescent state, focusing on all published research addressing the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We group research articles into those that consider all cells comprising the stationary-phase (SP) population as quiescent and those that recognize heterogeneity within the SP by distinguishing phenotypically distinct subpopulations. Furthermore, we investigate the chronological age of the quiescent populations under study and the methods used to induce the quiescent state, such as gradual starvation or abrupt environmental change. We also assess whether the strains used in research are prototrophic or auxotrophic. By combining the above features, we identify 48 possible experimental setups that can be used to study quiescence, which can be misleading when drawing general conclusions. We therefore summarize our review by proposing guidelines and recommendations pertaining to the information included in research articles. We believe that more rigorous reporting on the features of quiescent populations will facilitate knowledge transfer within and between disciplines, thereby stimulating valuable scientific discussion.

BY4741 cannot enter quiescence from rich medium

In rich medium, W303 Saccharomyces cerevisiae begins to accumulate in G1 an hour before it exhausts the available glucose. It undergoes one more asymmetrical cell division, then stops dividing in G1. In contrast, BY4741, stops dividing four hours before glucose exhaustion, at one-fourth the cell density achieved by W303. There is no asymmetrical cell division and only 50% of the cells arrest in G1. We conclude that BY4741 growth is not limited by glucose and they do not go through the stereotypical events carried out by other strains as they enter quiescence from rich medium. In W303, the timing of glucose limitation and the transition to quiescence is correlated with the rate of biomass accumulation and cell doubling time.

Quiescence in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Most cells live in environments that are permissive for proliferation only a small fraction of the time. Entering quiescence enables cells to survive long periods of nondivision and reenter the cell cycle when signaled to do so. Here, we describe what is known about the molecular basis for quiescence in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, with emphasis on the progress made in the last decade. Quiescence is triggered by depletion of an essential nutrient. It begins well before nutrient exhaustion, and there is extensive crosstalk between signaling pathways to ensure that all proliferation-specific activities are stopped when any one essential nutrient is limiting. Every aspect of gene expression is modified to redirect and conserve resources. Chromatin structure and composition change on a global scale, from histone modifications to three-dimensional chromatin structure. Thousands of proteins and RNAs aggregate, forming unique structures with unique fates, and the cytoplasm transitions to a glass-like state.

Cellular quiescence in budding yeast

Cellular quiescence, the temporary and reversible exit from proliferative growth, is the predominant state of all cells. However, our understanding of the biological processes and molecular mechanisms that underlie cell quiescence remains incomplete. As with the mitotic cell cycle, budding and fission yeast are preeminent model systems for studying cellular quiescence owing to their rich experimental toolboxes and the evolutionary conservation across eukaryotes of pathways and processes that control quiescence. Here, we review current knowledge of cell quiescence in budding yeast and how it pertains to cellular quiescence in other organisms, including multicellular animals. Quiescence entails large-scale remodeling of virtually every cellular process, organelle, gene expression, and metabolic state that is executed dynamically as cells undergo the initiation, maintenance, and exit from quiescence. We review these major transitions, our current understanding of their molecular bases, and highlight unresolved questions. We summarize the primary methods employed for quiescence studies in yeast and discuss their relative merits. Understanding cell quiescence has important consequences for human disease as quiescent single-celled microbes are notoriously difficult to kill and quiescent human cells play important roles in diseases such as cancer. We argue that research on cellular quiescence will be accelerated through the adoption of common criteria, and methods, for defining cell quiescence. An integrated approach to studying cell quiescence, and a focus on the behavior of individual cells, will yield new insights into the pathways and processes that underlie cell quiescence leading to a more complete understanding of the life cycle of cells. TAKE AWAY: Quiescent cells are viable cells that have reversibly exited the cell cycle Quiescence is induced in response to a variety of nutrient starvation signals Quiescence is executed dynamically through three phases: initiation, maintenance, and exit Quiescence entails large-scale remodeling of gene expression, organelles, and metabolism Single-cell approaches are required to address heterogeneity among quiescent cells.

A cell-nonautonomous mechanism of yeast chronological aging regulated by caloric restriction and one-carbon metabolism

Caloric restriction (CR) improves health span and life span of organisms ranging from yeast to mammals. Understanding the mechanisms involved will uncover future interventions for aging-associated diseases. In budding yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, CR is commonly defined by reduced glucose in the growth medium, which extends both replicative and chronological life span (CLS). We found that conditioned media collected from stationary-phase CR cultures extended CLS when supplemented into nonrestricted (NR) cultures, suggesting a potential cell-nonautonomous mechanism of CR-induced life span regulation. Chromatography and untargeted metabolomics of the conditioned media, as well as transcriptional responses associated with the longevity effect, pointed to specific amino acids enriched in the CR conditioned media (CRCM) as functional molecules, with L-serine being a particularly strong candidate. Indeed, supplementing L-serine into NR cultures extended CLS through a mechanism dependent on the one-carbon metabolism pathway, thus implicating this conserved and central metabolic hub in life span regulation.