Biogenesis of mitochondria: a temperature sensitivity mutation affecting the mitochondrially synthesized var1 protein of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Molecular genetics of the peptidyl transferase center and the unusual Var1 protein in yeast mitochondrial ribosomes

Mitochondria possess their own ribosomes responsible for the synthesis of a small number of proteins encoded by the mitochondrial genome. In yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the two ribosomal RNAs and a single ribosomal protein, Var1, are products of mitochondrial genes, and the remaining approximately 80 ribosomal proteins are encoded in the nucleus. The mitochondrial translation system is dispensable in yeast, providing an excellent experimental model for the molecular genetic analysis of the fundamental properties of ribosomes in general as well as adaptations required for the specialized role of ribosomes in mitochondria. Recent studies of the peptidyl transferase center, one of the most highly conserved functional centers of the ribosome, and the Var1 protein, an unusual yet essential protein in the small ribosomal subunit, have provided new insight into conserved and divergent features of the mitochondrial ribosome.

Relocation of the unusual VAR1 gene from the mitochondrion to the nucleus

The Var1 protein (Var1p) is an essential, stoichiometric component of the yeast mitochondrial small ribosomal subunit, and it is the only major protein product of the mitochondrial genetic system that is not part of an energy transducing complex of the inner membrane. Interestingly, no mutations have been reported that affect the function of Var1p, presumably because loss of a functional mitochondrial translation system leads to an instability of mtDNA. To study the structure, function and synthesis of Var1p, we have engineered yeast strains for the expression of this protein from a nuclear gene, VAR1U, in which 39 nonstandard mitochondrial codons were converted to the universal code. Immunoblot analysis using an epitope-tagged form of Var1Up showed that the nuclear-encoded protein was expressed and imported into the mitochondria. VAR1U was tested for its ability to complement a mutation in mtDNA, PZ206, which disrupts '3-end processing of the VARI mRNA, causing greatly reduced synthesis of Var1p and a respiratory-deficient phenotype. Respiratory growth was restored in PZ206 mutants by transformation with a centromere plasmid carrying VAR1U under ADH1 promoter control, thus proving that VAR1 function can be relocated from the mitochondrion to the nucleus. Moreover, epitope-tagged Var1Up co-sedimented specifically with small ribosomal subunits in high salt sucrose gradients. The relocation of VAR1 from the mitochondrion to the nucleus provides an excellent system for the molecular genetic analysis of structure-function relationships in the unusual Var1 protein.

Suppression of a yeast mitochondrial RNA processing defect by nuclear mutations

The S. cerevisiae strain h56 is a temperature-sensitive mit- mutant containing a single nucleotide substitution in the region 5' to the reading frame of the mitochondrial var1 gene. The mutation decreases the efficiency of processing of a precursor RNA such that little var1 mRNA is produced at the restrictive temperature, 36 degrees C. This communication reports the isolation and characterization of several strains carrying nuclear mutations which suppress the temperature-sensitivity of h56. Both dominant and recessive suppressor mutations were isolated. One dominant suppressor strain (h56-S4) was characterized biochemically, and the mechanism of suppression shown to involve a restoration of precursor RNA processing at the restrictive temperature, with a concomitant increase in the synthesis of the var1 protein. It appears likely that the suppressing allele encodes a component of an RNA processing endoribonuclease active on var1 transcripts. A genomic library was constructed from the h56-S4 strain, and several plasmids showing suppressed activity were isolated. A preliminary analysis of these plasmids is presented.

Characterization of a second nuclear gene, AEP1, required for expression of the mitochondrial OLI1 gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Due to mutation in a single nuclear locus, AEP1, the temperature-conditional pet mutant ts1860 of Saccharomyces cerevisiae fails to synthesize mitochondrial ATP synthase subunit 9 at the restrictive temperature of 36 degrees C. The presence at this temperature of near-normal levels of the cognate oli1 mRNA in mutant ts1860 indicates that, as previously shown, the product of the AEP1 gene is required for translation of the mitochondrial oli1 transcript. In this study the AEP1 gene has been cloned from a wild-type yeast genomic library by genetic complementation of a temperature-conditional aep1 strain at the restrictive temperature. A 2,330-bp genomic fragment which restores subunit 9 synthesis in aep1 mutant strains was characterized. This fragment encoded five open reading frames: the longest of these, at 1,554 nucleotides, was identified as the AEP1 gene, since disruption of this reading frame generated a non-conditional pet strain unable to synthesize subunit 9. The predicted product of AEP1 is a basic, hydrophilic protein of 59,571 Da which possesses a putative mitochondrial address sequence. Hybridization studies with AEP1-specific probes indicate that the gene is located on chromosome XIII and produces several poly(A)+ transcripts ranging in size from 0.9 to 2.7 kb. None of the identified reading frames share significant homologies with entries of several data bases.

Characterization of a yeast nuclear gene, AEP2, required for accumulation of mitochondrial mRNA encoding subunit 9 of the ATP synthase

The temperature-conditional pet mutant, ts379, of Saccharomyces cerevisiae fails to synthesize mitochondrial ATP synthase subunit 9 at the restrictive temperature due to mutation of a single nuclear locus, AEP2. The inability to synthesize subunit 9 correlates with a lowered accumulation of the cognate oli1 mRNA indicating that the AEP2 product is involved in oli1 transcript maturation or stabilization. The AEP2 gene has been isolated in this study from a wild-type yeast genomic library by genetic complementation of ts379 at the restrictive temperature. A 1,740 nucleotide open-reading frame was observed that encodes a basic, hydrophilic protein of 67,534 Da which possesses a putative mitochondrial address signal. Disruption of chromosomal DNA within this reading frame produced a non-conditional respiratory mutant unable to synthesize subunit 9, identifying the AEP2 gene. Hybridization analyses indicate that AEP2 is located on chromosome XIII and produces a 2.1 kb poly(A)+ transcript. Two additional open-reading frames were found in close proximity to that of AEP2. The three open-reading frames shared no significant homology with entries in several data bases.

Properties of two nuclear pet mutants affecting expression of the mitochondrial oli1 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

This study details the characteristics of two temperature-conditional pet mutants of yeast, strains ts1860 and ts379, which at the non-permissive temperature show deficiencies in the formation of three mitochondrially encoded subunits of the ATP synthase complex. By analysis of mitochondrial translation products, and of mitochondrial transcription in temperature shift experiments from the permissive (22 degrees C) to the non-permissive (36 degrees C) temperature, it was concluded that the nuclear mutations in both mutants primarily inhibit synthesis of ATP synthase subunit 9, and that reductions in subunit 8 and 6 synthesis are secondary pleiotropic effects. Following transfer to 36 degrees C, cells of mutant ts379 display a near complete inhibition of subunit 9 synthesis within 1 h, coincident with a marked reduction in the level of the cognate oli1 mRNA. On the other hand, near complete inhibition of subunit 9 synthesis in strain ts1860 occurs after 3 h at 36 degrees C, at which time there is little change in the level of subunit 9 mRNA. In both mutants the mRNA levels for subunits 6 and 8 are not significantly affected at the time of inhibition of subunit 9 synthesis. Provision of an alternative source of subunit 8, translated extra-mitochondrially for import into the organelle, does not overcome the mutant phenotype of either mutant at 36 degrees C, confirming that subunit 8 is not the sole or primary deficiency in each mutant. The mutants indicate that the products of a least two nuclear genes (designated AEP1 and AEP2) are required for the expression of the mitochondrial oli1 gene and the synthesis of subunit 9. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Mitochondrial H+-ATPase in mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae with defective subunit 8 of the enzyme complex

Mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae carrying defined lesions in the mitochondrial aap1 gene, coding for membrane subunit 8 of the H+-ATPase, have been investigated to examine the consequence of the mutations on the function and assembly of the enzyme complex. These include three mit- mutants, which cannot grow by oxidative metabolism due to their inability to synthesize full-length subunit 8, and three partial revertants of one of the mutants. The mutations in these strains have been previously characterized by DNA sequencing. The use of a monoclonal antibody to the beta subunit of the H+-ATPase as a probe of assembly defect revealed that the presence of subunit 8 is essential for the assembly of subunit 6 to the enzyme complex. Mitochondria isolated from the mit- mutants have negligible [32Pi]ATP exchange activity and they exhibited ATPase activity which is not sensitive to inhibition by oligomycin, indicating a defective membrane F0 sector. Normal assembly of subunit 8 (and subunit 6) was observed in the revertant strains, despite 8-9 amino-acid substitutions in the membrane-spanning region of the H+-ATPase subunit 8 in two of the strains. The assembled complex, however, exhibited reduced [32Pi]ATP exchange activity and low sensitivity to oligomycin, indicating that the product of the aap1 gene is a functional subunit of the mitochondrial H+-ATPase.

A mitochondrial intergenic mutation affecting processing of specific yeast mitochondrial transcripts

The mutation in the temperature-conditional mit- mutant h56, mapped previously to the var1 gene region of Saccharomyces cerevisiae mitochondrial DNA, results in a specific inhibition of var1 protein synthesis in cells incubated at the non-permissive temperature, 36 degrees C (1). We have now characterized the mutation present in mutant h56 by DNA sequencing and found it to be an A to T transversion located 109 nucleotides upstream of the var1 reading frame. Two spontaneous revertants of mutant h56 restore the parental strain sequence at residue -109, confirming that this single base change within the 5'-untranslated region of the var1 mRNA is responsible for defective synthesis of the var1 protein. A comparison of var1 transcripts in the parental and mutant strains has shown that the mutation specifically blocks formation of var1 mRNA at 36 degrees C and leads to accumulation of precursor transcripts. Expression of the oli1 gene, co-transcribed with the var1 gene in primary transcripts, is not affected. It is concluded that the mutation in mutant h56 alters the secondary structure of the precursor RNA, inhibiting an endonucleolytic cleavage required to generate the 5' end of var1 mRNA.

The definition of mitochondrial H+ ATPase assembly defects in mit- mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae with a monoclonal antibody to the enzyme complex as an assembly probe

mit- mutants with genetically defined mutations in the mitochondrial structural genes of the H+-ATPase membrane subunits 6, 8 and 9 were analysed to determine the H+-ATPase assembly defects that resulted as a consequence of the mutations. These include mutants which do not synthesize one of the membrane subunits and mutants which can synthesize these subunits, but in an altered form. Protein subunits which can still be assembled to the defective H+-ATPase in these mutants were determined by immunoprecipitation using a monoclonal antibody to the beta-subunit of the enzyme complex. The results suggest that the assembly pathway of the mitochondrially synthesized H+-ATPase subunits involves the sequential addition of subunits 9, 8 and 6 to a membrane-bound F1-sector. In addition to subunits of the F0- and F1-sectors, two other polypeptides (Mr = 18,000 and Mr = 25,000) are associated with the yeast H+-ATPase. These polypeptides were not observed in the immunoprecipitates obtained from mutants in which the F0-sector is not properly assembled.

Biogenesis of mitochondria: a mutation in the 5'-untranslated region of yeast mitochondrial oli1 mRNA leading to impairment in translation of subunit 9 of the mitochondrial ATPase complex

A temperature-conditional mit- mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been characterized; the mutant strain h45 cannot grow at 36 degrees C on nonfermentable substrates yet appears to be normal at 28 degrees C. The mutation in strain h45 maps genetically to the oli1 region of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genome, and prevents the synthesis at 36 degrees C of the oli1 gene product, subunit 9 of the mitochondrial ATPase complex. Since the level of oli1 mRNA in mutant h45 is close to normal at 36 degrees C, it is concluded that there is a specific block in translation of this mRNA at the non-permissive temperature. DNA sequence analysis of mtDNA from strain h45 reveals an additional T residue inserted 88 bp upstream of the oli1 coding region, in the A,T-rich sequence that is transcribed into the 5'-untranslated region of the oli1 mRNA. Sequence data on two revertants show that one returns to wild-type parental (J69-1B) mtDNA sequence, whilst the other contains an inserted A residue adjacent to the T inserted in the original h45 mutant. The results are discussed in terms of the stability of folds in RNA upstream of putative ribosome-binding sites in mitochondrial mRNA, and the potential action of nuclear-coded proteins that might be activators of the translation of specific mitochondrial mRNAs in yeast mitochondria.

Assembly of the mitochondrial ribosomes in a temperature-conditional mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae defective in the synthesis of the var1 protein

An investigation of the role of the var1 protein in the assembly of the yeast mitochondrial ribosomes was carried out in a temperature conditional mutant, strain h56, which contains a mutation (tsv1) just upstream of the structural gene for the var1 protein. The mutation results in a marked decrease in the synthesis of the var1 protein at the permissive temperature of 28 degrees C and an apparently complete absence of var1 synthesis at the restrictive temperature of 36 degrees C. Long-term growth of strain h56 at the non-permissive temperature was found to result in the loss of the small (37 S) ribosomal subunit and the appearance of a novel 30 S ribonucleoparticle. Both the small (37 S) and the large (54 S) mitochondrial ribosomal subunits were found to be assembled in strain h56 for at least 3 h after transfer to the non-permissive temperature.

Amino acid substitutions in mitochondrial ATPase subunit 6 of Saccharomyces cerevisiae leading to oligomycin resistance

The amino acid substitutions in subunit 6 of the mitochondrial ATPase complex have been determined for 4 oligomycin resistant mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The data were obtained for each mutant by nucleotide sequence analysis of the mitochondrial oli2 gene. Amino acid substitutions conferring oligomycin resistance in subunit 6 are located in two conserved regions that are thought to form domains which span the inner mitochondrial membrane. The disposition of these amino acid substitutions is consistent with the view that these two membrane-spanning domains interact structurally and functionally with the DCCD-binding proteolipid subunit 9 in the Fo-sector.

Characterization of epitopes of the yeast mitochondrial H+-ATPase complex recognized by monoclonal antibodies

Nine monoclonal antibodies which react with the beta subunit of the yeast mitochondrial H+-ATPase and three which react with a 25 kDa subunit of the enzyme complex (P25) have been characterized. Competitive binding studies indicated the presence of at least four antigenic regions on the beta subunit of the enzyme complex. One antigenic region of the beta subunit is recognized by two monoclonal antibodies RH 57.1 and RH 45.5 which inhibit the ATPase activity to different degrees. Antibody RH 48.6 appears to bind to a second region on the beta subunit and has no effect on the ATPase activity. A third region of the beta subunit is recognized by antibodies RH 51.4 and RH 72.1. RH 51.4 has no effect on the ATPase activity, whereas RH 72.1 stimulates ATPase activity. Antibody RH 32.4 which has no effect on the ATPase activity appears to bind to the fourth epitope of the beta subunit. All three monoclonal anti-P25 antibodies, RH 66.3, RH 41.2 and RH 37.0, apparently bind to the same antigenic region on this subunit. Two of the monoclonal anti-beta antibodies RH 48.6 and RH 51.4 were found to be very effective in immunoprecipitating the whole H+-ATPase complex in a solid phase system. However, the other monoclonal antibodies (and also a polyclonal antiserum) appear to induce the dissociation of one or more of the H+-ATPase subunits by their binding to the epitopes on the beta or the P25 subunits.

The oli1 gene and flanking sequences in mitochondrial DNA of Saccharomyces cerevisiae: the complete nucleotide sequence of a 1.35 kilobase petite mitochondrial DNA genome covering the oli1 gene

As part of our genetic and molecular analysis of mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae affected in the oli1 gene (coding for mitochondrial ATPase subunit 9) we have determined the complete nucleotide sequence of the mtDNA genome of a petite (23-3) carrying this gene. Petite 23-3 (1,355 base pairs) retains a continuous segment of the relevant wild-type (J69-1B) mtDNA genome extending 983 nucleotides upstream, and 126 nucleotides downstream, of the 231 nucleotide oli1 coding region. There is a 15-nucleotide excision sequence in petite 23-3 mtDNA which occurs as a direct repeat in the wild-type mtDNA sequence flanking the unique petite mtDNA segment (interestingly, this excision sequence in petite 23-3 carries a single base substitution relative to the parental wild-type sequence). The putative replication origin of petite 23-3 is considered to be in its single G,C rich cluster, which differs in just one nucleotide from the standard oriS sequence. The DNA sequences in the intergenic regions flanking the oli1 gene of strain J69-1B (and its derivatives) have been systematically compared to those of the corresponding regions of mtDNA in strains derived from the D273-10B parent (sequences from the laboratory of A. Tzagoloff). The nature and distribution of the sequence divergences (base substitutions, base deletions or insertions, and more extensive rearrangements) are considered in the context of functions associated with mitochondrial gene expression which are ascribed to specialized sequences in the intergenic regions of the yeast mitochondrial genome.

DNA sequence analysis of the oli1 gene reveals amino acid changes in mitochondrial ATPase subunit 9 from oligomycin-resistant mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The nucleotide sequence of the oli1 gene encoding mitochondrial ATPase subunit 9 (76 amino acids) has been determined for five oligomycin-resistant mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Three of the mutations affect amino acids in the vicinity of the glutamic acid residue 59 at which dicylohexyl carbodiimide binds. Two other mutations lead to substitution of amino acid 23, which would lie very close to residue 59 in the folded hairpin conformation that this protein is thought to adopt in the inner mitochondrial membrane. The apposition of residues 23 and those adjacent to residue 59, lying respectively in the two hydrophobic membrane-spanning arms of subunit 9, is considered to constitute an oligomycin-binding domain. By consideration of the amino acid substitutions in those mutants cross-resistant to venturicidin, a domain of resistance for venturicidin is defined to lie within the oligomycin-binding domain, also centered on residues 23 and 59. These data also clarify the genetic recombination behaviour of alleles previously defined to form part of the oli3 locus (mutants characterized by resistance to both oligomycin and venturicidin) together with alleles defined to form part of the oli1 locus (mutants not cross-resistant to venturicidin). The oli1 and oli3 loci can now be seen to form two overlapping extended groups within the oli1 gene, with sequenced oli3 mutations being as far apart as 125 nucleotides within the subunit 9 coding region of 231 nucleotides.

var1 Gene on the mitochondrial genome of Torulopsis glabrata

We have cloned and sequenced a region of the Torulopsis glabrata mitochondrial genome homologous to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae var1 gene (var1Sc). An open reading frame that could encode a protein of 339 amino acids was found with 72.7% amino acid and 85.3% nucleotide sequence homology to the S. cerevisiae var1 gene. The T. glabrata gene (var1Tg) is transcribed yielding two stable RNAs, a more abundant 13.5 S RNA and a less abundant 18 S species. We have also identified a candidate for a T. glabrata var1 protein among mitochondrial translation products labeled in isolated mitochondria. The var1Tg gene is even more A + T-rich (93%) than var1Sc (89.6%) and has conserved the strong codon bias of var1Sc. Major differences between the two sequences were found. Significant among these are that no GC clusters are found in var1Tg and the sequences surrounding each of the sites where known polymorphisms exist in var1Sc have deletions at the corresponding sites in var1Tg. These data are discussed with respect to possible origins of these var1 genes and translocation of GC clusters in S. cerevisiae mitochondrial DNA.

The unusual varl gene of yeast mitochondrial DNA

The var1 gene specifies the only mitochondrial ribosomal protein known to be encoded by yeast mitochondrial DNA. The gene is unusual in that its base composition is nearly 90 percent adenine plus thymine. It and its expression product show a strain-dependent variation in size of up to 7 percent; this variation does not detectably interfere with function. Furthermore, var1 is an expandable gene that participates in a novel recombinational event resembling gene conversion whereby shorter alleles are preferentially converted to longer ones. The remarkable features of var1 indicate that it may have evolved by a mechanism analogous to exon shuffling, although no introns are actually present.

Defective assembly of the mitochondrial ribosomes in yeast cells grown in the presence of mitochondrial protein synthesis inhibitors

The involvement of mitochondrial protein synthesis in the assembly of the mitochondrial ribosomes was investigated by studying the extent to which the assembly process can proceed in the presence of mitochondrial protein synthesis inhibitors erythromycin and chloramphenicol. Yeast cells grown in the presence of erythromycin (2 mg/ml) do not appear to contain any detectable amounts of the mitochondrial small (37 S) ribosomal subunit. Instead, a ribonucleoparticle with a sedimentation coefficient of 30 S was observed; this particle could be shown to be related to the mitochondrial small ribosomal subunit by two-dimensional gel electrophoretic analysis of its protein components. Since the var1 protein is the only mitochondrial translation product known to be associated with the mitochondrial ribosome, our results suggest that this protein is essential for the assembly of the mature small subunit, and that the var1 protein enters the pathway for the assembly of the small subunit at a late step. In at least one strain of yeast the accumulation of the 30-S particle appears to be very sensitive to catabolite repression. When yeast cells are grown in the presence of chloramphenicol instead of erythromycin, assembly of the small subunit appears to be only partially inhibited, and the presence of the 30-S particle could not be clearly demonstrated. This observation is consistent with the fact that in yeast, chloramphenicol inhibits mitochondrial protein synthesis by about 95% only and that the synthesis of the var1 protein appears to be the least sensitive to this inhibition.

Biogenesis of mitochondria: DNA sequence analysis of mit- mutations in the mitochondrial oli1 gene coding for mitochondrial ATPase subunit 9 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The nucleotide sequence of the yeast mitochondrial olil gene has been obtained in a series of mit- mutants with mutations in this gene, which codes for subunit 9 of of the mitochondrial ATPase complex. Subunit 9 is the proteolipid, 76 amino acids in length, necessary for the proton translocation function of the membrane Fo-sector. These mutants were classified on the basis of their rescue by a petite strain shown here to retain the entire wild-type olil gene. The mutation in one mit- strain removes a positively charged residue (Arg39----Met) which is likely to be located in a segment of subunit 9 that protrudes from the inner mitochondrial membrane. In a second mit- mutant, a negatively charged residue replaces a conserved glycine residue (Gly18----Asp) in a glycine-rich segment of the protein that is most likely embedded within the membrane. Other mit- mutations result in frameshifts with predicted products 7, 65 and 68 amino acid residues long. In each mit- mutant, there is the loss of one or more of the amino acid residues that are highly conserved among diverse species. The location and nature of specific changes pinpoint amino acid residues in subunit 9 essential to the activity of the mitochondrial ATPase complex.

Mitochondrial adenosine triphosphatase in mit- mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiase with defective subunit 6 of the enzyme complex

mit- Mutants carrying genetically defined mutations in the oli2 region of the mitochondrial DNA were analysed. Most of these mutants demonstrated either the absence of subunit 6 or its replacement by shorter mitochondrial translation products which could be shown to be structurally related to subunit 6 by using a rabbit anti F1F0-antiserum, and by limited proteolytic mapping of the new mitochondrial translation products. Three representative oli2 mit- strains were analysed for the effects of a grossly altered subunit 6 or of a complete absence of this subunit on the activity and assembly of the H+-ATPase. Our results suggest that this subunit is not required for the assembly of the proton channel of the enzyme complex. Thus, in the absence of subunit 6, the mitochondrial respiratory activities in the oli2 mutants were found to be still sensitive to oligomycin, a specific inhibitor of the H+-ATPase proton channel. Immunoprecipitation of the assembled H+-ATPase subunits from these mutant strains using a monoclonal anti-beta-subunit antibody indicates that subunit 6 is also not essential for the assembly of most F1 subunits to components of the F0 sector.

Biogenesis of mitochondria: defective yeast H+-ATPase assembled in the absence of mitochondrial protein synthesis is membrane associated

We have investigated the extent to which the assembly of the cytoplasmically synthesized subunits of the H+-ATPase can proceed in a mtDNA-less (rho degree) strain of yeast, which is not capable of mitochondrial protein synthesis. Three of the membrane sector proteins of the yeast H+-ATPase are synthesized in the mitochondria, and it is important to determine whether the presence of these subunits is essential for the assembly of the imported subunits to the inner mitochondrial membrane. A monoclonal antibody against the cytoplasmically synthesized beta-subunit of the H+-ATPase was used to immunoprecipitate the assembled subunits of the enzyme complex. Our results indicate that the imported subunits of the H+-ATPase can be assembled in this mutant, into a defective complex which could be shown to be associated with the mitochondrial membrane by the analysis of the Arrhenius kinetics of the mutant mitochondrial ATPase activity.

Monoclonal antibodies against subunits of yeast mitochondrial H+-ATPase

Fourteen stable lines of myeloma-spleen cell hybrids producing antibodies against the mitochondrial H+-ATPase have been isolated. One reacted with the alpha-subunit of the enzyme complex (Mr 56000), nine with the beta-subunit (Mr 54000), and four with a 25 kDa subunit which has not been previously characterized. These antibodies are inhibitory or stimulatory or have no effect upon the enzyme activity. Two of the monoclonal anti-beta-subunit antibodies were found to be particularly effective in immunoprecipitating intact H+-ATPase complex.

The formation of a defective small subunit of the mitochondrial ribosomes in petite mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The involvement of mitochondrial protein synthesis in the assembly of the mitochondrial ribosomes was investigated by studying the extent to which the assembly process can proceed in petite mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae which lack mitochondrial protein synthetic activity due to the deletion of some tRNA genes and/or one of the rRNA genes on the mtDNA. Petite strains which retain the 15-S rRNA gene can synthesize this rRNA species, but do not contain any detectable amounts of the small mitochondrial ribosomal subunit. Instead, a ribonucleoparticle with a sedimentation coefficient of 30 S (instead of 37 S) was observed. This ribonucleoparticle contained all the small ribosomal subunit proteins with the exception of the var1 and three to five other proteins, which indicates that the 30-S ribonucleoparticle is related to the small mitochondrial ribosomal subunit (37 S). Reconstitution experiments using the 30-S particle and the large mitochondrial ribosomal subunit from a wild-type yeast strain indicate that the 30-S particle is not active in translating the artificial message poly(U). The large mitochondrial ribosomal subunit was present in petite strains retaining the 21-S rRNA gene. The petite 54-S subunit is biologically active in the translation of poly(U) when reconstituted with the small subunit (37 S) from a wild-type strain. The above results indicate that mitochondrial protein synthetic activity is essential for the assembly of the mature small ribosomal subunit, but not for the large subunit. Since the var1 protein is the only mitochondrial translation product known to date to be associated with the mitochondrial ribosomes, the results suggest that this protein is essential for the assembly of the mature small subunit.

Biogenesis of mitochondria: the mitochondrial gene (aap1) coding for mitochondrial ATPase subunit 8 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

A mitochondrial gene (denoted aap1) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been characterized by nucleotide sequence analysis of a region of mtDNA between the oxi3 and oli2 genes. The reading frame of the aap1 gene specifies a hydrophobic polypeptide containing 48 amino acids. The functional nature of this reading frame was established by sequence analysis of a series of mit- mutants and revertants. Evidence is presented that the aap1 gene codes for a mitochondrially synthesized polypeptide associated with the mitochondrial ATPase complex. This polypeptide (denoted subunit 8) is a proteolipid whose size has been previously assumed to be 10 kilodaltons based on its mobility on SDS-polyacrylamide gels, but the sequence of the aap1 gene predicts a molecular weight of 5,815 for this protein.

A petite mitochondrial DNA segment arising in exceptionally high frequency in a mit- mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

In cultures of the mit- mutant strain Mb12 of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (carrying a mutation in the oli2 gene), 70% of the cells are petite mutants. More than 80% of the petites from Mb12 contain a particular mtDNA segment, denoted BB5, that is 880 bp long and carries a single MboI site. Thus, in cultures of Mb12, about 56% of the cells are petites containing the defective BB5 mtDNA genome, and only 30% are mit- cells containing parental Mb12 mtDNA. The BB5 mtDNA segment is also found in petites arising from the wild-type strain J69-1B (from which Mb12 was derived), but in this case mtDNA from only five out of 24 petites produced an 880 bp band after MboI digestion. Since J69-1B cultures carry a petite frequency of about 5%, approximately 1% of cells in J69-1B cultures contain the BB5 mtDNA segment. The difference between Mb12 and J69-1B cultures is reflected in the MboI digestion patterns of the respective mtDNAs. While Mb12 mtDNA contains a grossly superstoicheiometric 880 bp MboI fragment, the corresponding fragment in J69-1B mtDNA cannot be seen on stained gels, but can be readily visualized in Southern blots hybridized to a 32P-labelled DNA probe obtained from the 880 bp MboI fragment. The BB5 mtDNA segment was shown to contain the ori1 sequence (one of several very similar sequences in wild-type mtDNA thought to act as origins of replication of mtDNA) which confers the genetic property of very high suppressiveness on petites carrying this mtDNA. The efficient replication of BB5 mtDNA may contribute to its abundance in Mb12 cultures. Nevertheless, other factors must operate to influence the abundance of the BB5 mtDNA segment in cultures of different strains, the most important of which is likely to be the rate of excision of this mtDNA segment from the parental mtDNA genome.

Identification and consequences of a guanosine-15 to adenosine-15 change in the yeast mitochondrial tRNASerUCX gene

We have characterized a mutation affecting the yeast mitochondrial tRNASerUCX. The mutation is a single nucleotide substitution located within the structural portion of the tRNASerUCX gene which causes the strain to be respiratory deficient. The substitution is a G leads to A transition located in the dihydrouridine arm. The tRNASerUCX transcripts from the mutant gene are present in the same amount and are the same size as transcripts from the wild-type gene. The mutant tRNASerUCX can be charged in vitro with mitochondrial aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase. Mitochondrial protein synthesis does occur in the mutant, but the amount of cytochrome oxidase subunit I is significantly decreased relative to other mitochondrial translation products.

Glucose-induced inactivation of mitochondrial enzymes in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae

1. Addition of glucose induced an inactivation of mitochondrial enzymes in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae containing normal mitochondrial particles. 2. The glucose-induced inactivation of mitochondrial enzymes was inhibited by the presence of cycloheximide. 3. Pepstatin also inhibited the inactivation, but phenylmethanesulphonyl fluoride accelerated the inactivation. 4. The specific activities of fructose 1,6-bisphosphatase and cytoplasmic malate dehydrogenase were decreased on the exposure to glucose, as well as those of the mitochondrial enzymes. However, the glucose-induced inactivation of cytoplasmic enzymes was not inhibited by the presence of pepstatin. 5. The specific activities of hexokinase and phosphofructokinase, which are cytoplasmic enzymes were increased by the addition of glucose, and this effect was not affected by pepstatin. 6. Addition of glucose resulted in an increase in the synthesis of proteins of the mitochondria and the cytosol, and simultaneously in degradation of these mitochondrial and cytoplasmic proteins.

Biogenesis of mitochondria. Defective assembly of the proteolipid into the mitochondrial adenosine triphosphatase complex in an oli2 mit- mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

A single mutation in the oli2 region of the mitochondrial DNA causes a charge alteration in a mitochondrially translated subunit of the mitochondrial ATPase (subunit 6; apparent Mr 20 000; apparent pI 6.9 and 7.1). This alteration leads to the defective assembly of the proteolipid subunit into the enzyme complex. The mutant, which is able to grow only very slowly by oxidative metabolism at 28 degrees C offers new possibilities for studying the assembly of the membrane sector (F0) into the mitochondrial ATPase complex and the role of subunit 6 in this process.

mit-Mutations in the structural gene of subunit III of cytochrome oxidase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Two-dimensional electrophoretic analysis of the mitochondrial translation products of four mit-mutants indicate that subunit III of cytochrome oxidase is the only mitochondrial translation product affected by mutations in the oxi2 region of the mtDNA. Mitochondria of two of these mutants synthesize new products which coprecipitate with an anticytochrome oxidase antiserum and produce proteolytic digests similar to those of subunit III of the enzyme complex. These data strongly support the suggestion that the oxi2 region of the yeast mtDNA contains the structural gene of subunit III of cytochrome oxidase.

The largest mitochondrial translation product copurifying with the mitochondrial adenosine triphosphatase of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is not a subunit of the enzyme complex

Mitochondrial adenosine triphosphatase isolated from a double mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae lacking cytochrome b apoprotein and subunit II of cytochrome oxidase does not contain the mitochondrial translation product (approximate molecular weight, 32,000) previously suggested to be a subunit of the enzyme complex.

Mitochondrially synthesized protein subunits of the yeast mitochondrial adenosine triphosphatase. A reassessment

Evidence is presented that a mitochondrial translation product (Mr, 32,000) previously thought to be a subunit of the membrane sector of the yeast mitochondrial ATPase is a contaminant, consisting of subunit II of the cytochrome oxidase complex and cytochrome b apoprotein. Our data suggest that only two subunits (Mr, 7600 and 20,000) of the mitochondrial ATPase are synthesized in the mitochondria.

Biogenesis of mitochondria. oli2 Mutations affecting the coupling of oxidation to phosphorylation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

1. Two oligomycin-resistant strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae have been isolated and shown to have mutations in the oli2 region of the mitochondrial DNA. On solid media containing a non-fermentable energy source, the mutant strains were able to grow only slowly at 28 degrees C and not at all at 18 degrees C or 36 degrees C. 2. When grown in a glucose-limited chemostat at 28 degrees C, the mutant strains were almost completely defective in oxidative metabolism. The mutant mitochondria contained significant levels of all respiratory enzymes, and an active, oligomycin-sensitive ATPase, but the ATP-32Pi exchange activity and P : O ratio were very low. 3. The mutations in these strains are genetically closely linked to mit mutations which have been shown to affect a 20 000-dalton ATPase subunit (Roberts, H., Choo, W.M., Murphy, M., Marzuki, S., Lukins, H.B. and Linnane, A.W. (1979) FEBS Lett. 108, 501-504). Since the mitochondrial ATPase in these mutant strains appears to be fully assembled, the defect in the coupling mechanism is probably a result of a small alteration in the structure of the 20 000-dalton ATPase subunit. 4. When the mutant strains were grown at 18 degrees C, the mitochondria had very low cytochrome oxidase activities, and reduced levels of cytochrome aa3. The largest subunit (Mr 40 000) of this enzyme was not synthesized.