Control of leucine transport in yeast by periplasmic binding proteins

Isolation of a gene encoding a chaperonin-like protein by complementation of yeast amino acid transport mutants with human cDNA

A human cDNA library in lambda-yes plasmid was used to transform a strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae with defects in histidine biosynthesis (his4-401) and histidine permease (hip1-614) and with the general amino acid permease (GAP) repressed by excess ammonium. We investigated three plasmids complementing the transport defect on a medium with a low concentration of histidine. Inserts in these plasmids hybridized with human genomic but not yeast genomic DNA, indicating their human origin. mRNA corresponding to the human DNA insert was produced by each yeast transformant. Complementation of the histidine transport defect was confirmed by direct measurement of histidine uptake, which was increased 15- to 65-fold in the transformants as compared with the parental strain. Competitive inhibition studies, measurement of citrulline uptake, and lack of complementation in gap1- strains indicated that the human cDNA genes code for proteins that prevent GAP repression by ammonium. The amino acid sequence encoded by one of the cDNA clones is related to T-complex proteins, which suggests a "chaperonin"-like function. We suggest that the human chaperonin-like protein stabilizes the NPR1 gene product and prevents inactivation of GAP.

A high-affinity uptake system for branched-chain amino acids in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

In order to isolate mutants with impaired uptake of branched-chain amino acids, mutants were induced which on complex medium were sensitive to an inhibitor of branched-chain amino acid biosynthesis. Eighteen mutants of independent origin were found. Ten of them were assayed for branched-chain amino acid uptake. Three of these were impaired in the uptake of L-valine, L-isoleucine and L-leucine, while the rest were unaffected in uptake of any of the three amino acids. Kinetics of the uptake by one selected mutant and the parental strain S288C were compared to models for one or two systems obeying Michaelis-Menten kinetics. This analysis suggested that a high-affinity system for all three amino acids is absent in the mutant, whereas low-affinity uptake of L-isoleucine and L-leucine by one or more systems remains unaffected. Moreover, medium-affinity uptake components for L-valine and L-leucine, not originally seen in the wild type, were identified in the mutant. In the wild type, 10 mM of any of the amino acids L-alanine, L-cysteine, L-isoleucine, L-leucine, L-tryptophan and L-valine reduce uptake of any of the three branched-chain amino acids. We propose that a permease responsible for high-affinity uptake of the branched-chain amino acids in strain S288C is partially or completely inactive in the mutant. Tetrad analysis shows that the phenotype can be ascribed to a single Mendelian gene. The wild-type allele is denoted BAP1 for branched-chain amino acid permease. The BAP1-dependent system is different from the general amino acid permease.

High affinity of acid phosphatase encoded by PHO3 gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae for thiamin phosphates

The enzymatic properties of acid phosphatase (orthophosphoric-monoester phosphohydrolase, EC 3.1.3.2) encoded by PHO3 gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which is repressed by thiamin and has thiamin-binding activity at pH 5.0, were investigated to study physiological functions. The following results led to the conclusion that thiamin-repressible acid phosphatase physiologically catalyzes the hydrolysis of thiamin phosphates in the periplasmic space of S. cerevisiae, thus participating in utilization of the thiamin moiety of the phosphates by yeast cells: (a) thiamin-repressible acid phosphatase showed Km values of 1.6 and 1.7 microM at pH 5.0 for thiamin monophosphate and thiamin pyrophosphate, respectively. These Km values were 2-3 orders of magnitude lower than those (0.61 and 1.7 mM) for p-nitrophenyl phosphate; (b) thiamin exerted remarkable competitive inhibition in the hydrolysis of thiamin monophosphate (Ki 2.2 microM at pH 5.0), whereas the activity for p-nitrophenyl phosphate was slightly affected by thiamin; (c) the inhibitory effect of inorganic phosphate, which does not repress the thiamin-repressible enzyme, on the hydrolysis of thiamin monophosphate was much smaller than that of p-nitrophenyl phosphate. Moreover, the modification of thiamin-repressible acid phosphatase of S. cerevisiae with 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide resulted in the complete loss of thiamin-binding activity and the Km value of the modified enzyme for thiamin monophosphate increased nearly to the value of the native enzyme for p-nitrophenyl phosphate. These results also indicate that the high affinity of the thiamin-repressible acid phosphatase for thiamin phosphates is due to the thiamin-binding properties of this enzyme.