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Mathelié-Guinlet M, Viela F, Dehullu J, Filimonava S, Rauceo JM, Lipke PN, Dufrêne YF. Single-cell fluidic force microscopy reveals stress-dependent molecular interactions in yeast mating. Commun Biol 2021; 4:33. [PMID: 33397995 PMCID: PMC7782832 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-020-01498-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2020] [Accepted: 11/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Sexual agglutinins of the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae are proteins mediating cell aggregation during mating. Complementary agglutinins expressed by cells of opposite mating types "a" and "α" bind together to promote agglutination and facilitate fusion of haploid cells. By means of an innovative single-cell manipulation assay combining fluidic force microscopy with force spectroscopy, we unravel the strength of single specific bonds between a- and α-agglutinins (~100 pN) which require pheromone induction. Prolonged cell-cell contact strongly increases adhesion between mating cells, likely resulting from an increased expression of agglutinins. In addition, we highlight the critical role of disulfide bonds of the a-agglutinin and of histidine residue H273 of α-agglutinin. Most interestingly, we find that mechanical tension enhances the interaction strength, pointing to a model where physical stress induces conformational changes in the agglutinins, from a weak-binding folded state, to a strong-binding extended state. Our single-cell technology shows promises for understanding and controlling the complex mechanism of yeast sexuality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marion Mathelié-Guinlet
- Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology, UCLouvain, Croix du Sud, 4-5, bte L7.07.07, 1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Felipe Viela
- Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology, UCLouvain, Croix du Sud, 4-5, bte L7.07.07, 1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Jérôme Dehullu
- Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology, UCLouvain, Croix du Sud, 4-5, bte L7.07.07, 1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Sviatlana Filimonava
- Department of Sciences, John Jay College of the City University of New York, New York, NY, 10019, USA
| | - Jason M Rauceo
- Department of Sciences, John Jay College of the City University of New York, New York, NY, 10019, USA
| | - Peter N Lipke
- Biology Department, Brooklyn College of the City University of New York, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY, 11210, USA.
| | - Yves F Dufrêne
- Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology, UCLouvain, Croix du Sud, 4-5, bte L7.07.07, 1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.
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Banderas A, Koltai M, Anders A, Sourjik V. Sensory input attenuation allows predictive sexual response in yeast. Nat Commun 2016; 7:12590. [PMID: 27557894 PMCID: PMC5007329 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms12590] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2015] [Accepted: 07/14/2016] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals are known to adjust their sexual behaviour depending on mate competition. Here we report similar regulation for mating behaviour in a sexual unicellular eukaryote, the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We demonstrate that pheromone-based communication between the two mating types, coupled to input attenuation by recipient cells, enables yeast to robustly monitor relative mate abundance (sex ratio) within a mixed population and to adjust their commitment to sexual reproduction in proportion to their estimated chances of successful mating. The mechanism of sex-ratio sensing relies on the diffusible peptidase Bar1, which is known to degrade the pheromone signal produced by mating partners. We further show that such a response to sexual competition within a population can optimize the fitness trade-off between the costs and benefits of mating response induction. Our study thus provides an adaptive explanation for the known molecular mechanism of pheromone degradation in yeast. Cells of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae can mate with other cells of opposite mating type. Here, the authors show that the combination of a pheromone and a pheromone-degrading enzyme allows yeast cells to monitor relative mate abundance within a population and adjust their commitment to sexual reproduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alvaro Banderas
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology &LOEWE Research Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 16, D-35037 Marburg, Germany.,Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie der Universität Heidelberg, DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Mihaly Koltai
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology &LOEWE Research Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 16, D-35037 Marburg, Germany
| | - Alexander Anders
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology &LOEWE Research Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 16, D-35037 Marburg, Germany
| | - Victor Sourjik
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology &LOEWE Research Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 16, D-35037 Marburg, Germany
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Cell aggregations in yeasts and their applications. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2013; 97:2305-18. [PMID: 23397484 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-013-4735-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2012] [Revised: 01/19/2013] [Accepted: 01/21/2013] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Yeasts can display four types of cellular aggregation: sexual, flocculation, biofilm formation, and filamentous growth. These cell aggregations arise, in some yeast strains, as a response to environmental or physiological changes. Sexual aggregation is part of the yeast mating process, representing the first step of meiotic recombination. The flocculation phenomenon is a calcium-dependent asexual reversible cellular aggregation that allows the yeast to withstand adverse conditions. Biofilm formation consists of multicellular aggregates that adhere to solid surfaces and are embedded in a protein matrix; this gives the yeast strain either the ability to colonize new environments or to survive harsh environmental conditions. Finally, the filamentous growth is the ability of some yeast strains to grow in filament forms. Filamentous growth can be attained by two different means, with the formation of either hyphae or pseudohyphae. Both hyphae and pseudohyphae arise when the yeast strain is under nutrient starvation conditions and they represent a means for the microbial strain to spread over a wide area to survey for food sources, without increasing its biomass. Additionally, this filamentous growth is also responsible for the invasive growth of some yeast.
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Xie X, Qiu WG, Lipke PN. Accelerated and adaptive evolution of yeast sexual adhesins. Mol Biol Evol 2011; 28:3127-37. [PMID: 21633112 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msr145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
There is a recent emergence of interest in the genes involved in gametic recognition as drivers of reproductive isolation. The recent population genomic sequencing of two species of sexually primitive yeasts (Liti G, Carter DM, Moses AM, Warringer J, Parts L, James SA, Davey RP, Roberts IN, Burt A, Koufopanou V et al. [23 co-authors]. 2009. Population genomics of domestic and wild yeasts. Nature 458:337-341.) has provided data for systematic study of the roles these genes play in the early evolution of sex and speciation. Here, we discovered that among genes encoding cell surface proteins, the sexual adhesin genes have evolved significantly more rapidly than others, both within and between Saccharomyces cerevisiae and its closest relative S. paradoxus. This result was supported by analyses using the PAML pairwise model, a modified McDonald-Kreitman test, and the PAML branch model. Moreover, using a combination of a new statistic of neutrality, an information theory-based measure of evolutionary variability, and functional characterization of amino acid changes, we found that a higher proportion of amino acid changes are fixed in the sexual adhesins than in other proteins and a greater proportion of the fixed amino acid changes either between the two species or the two subgroups of S. paradoxus are functionally dissimilar or radically different. These results suggest that the accelerated evolution of sexual adhesin genes may facilitate speciation, or incipient speciation, and promote sexual selection in general.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xianfa Xie
- Department of Biology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, NY, USA.
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Different modulation of the outputs of yeast MAPK-mediated pathways by distinct stimuli and isoforms of the dual-specificity phosphatase Msg5. Mol Genet Genomics 2009; 281:345-59. [PMID: 19123063 DOI: 10.1007/s00438-008-0415-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2008] [Accepted: 12/12/2008] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The activity of protein phosphatases on mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKS) is essential in the modulation of the final outcome of MAPK-signalling pathways. The yeast dual-specificity phosphatase (DSP) Msg5, expressed as two isoforms of different length, dephosphorylates the MAPKs of mating and cell integrity pathways, Fus3 and Slt2, respectively, but its action on the MAPK Kss1 is unclear. Here we analyse the global impact of Msg5 on the yeast transcriptome. Both Fus3- and Slt2- but not Kss1-mediated gene expression is induced in cells lacking Msg5. However, although these cells show high Slt2 phosphorylation, the Rlm1-dependent Slt2-regulated transcriptional response is weak. Therefore, mechanisms concomitant with Slt2 phosphorylation are required for a strong Rlm1 activation. The limited Slt2 activity on Rlm1 is not a specific effect on this substrate but a consequence of its low kinase activity in msg5Delta cells. Lack of Msg5 does not increase Kss1 phosphorylation although both proteins physically interact. Both Msg5 isoforms interact similarly with Slt2, whereas the long form binds Fus3 with higher affinity and consequently down-regulates it more efficiently than the short one. We propose that specific binding of DSP isoforms to distinct MAPKs provides a novel mechanism for fine tuning different pathways by the same phosphatase.
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Zhao H, Shen ZM, Kahn PC, Lipke PN. Interaction of alpha-agglutinin and a-agglutinin, Saccharomyces cerevisiae sexual cell adhesion molecules. J Bacteriol 2001; 183:2874-80. [PMID: 11292808 PMCID: PMC99505 DOI: 10.1128/jb.183.9.2874-2880.2001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
alpha-Agglutinin and a-agglutinin are complementary cell adhesion glycoproteins active during mating in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. They bind with high affinity and high specificity: cells of opposite mating types are irreversibly bound by a few pairs of agglutinins. Equilibrium and surface plasmon resonance kinetic analyses showed that the purified binding region of alpha-agglutinin interacted similarly with purified a-agglutinin and with a-agglutinin expressed on cell surfaces. At 20 degrees C, the K(D) for the interaction was 2 x 10(-9) to 5 x 10(-9) M. This high affinity was a result of a very low dissociation rate ( approximately 2.6 x 10(-4) s(-1)) coupled with a low association rate (= 5 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1)). Circular-dichroism spectroscopy showed that binding of the proteins was accompanied by measurable changes in secondary structure. Furthermore, when binding was assessed at 10 degrees C, the association kinetics were sigmoidal, with a very low initial rate. An induced-fit model of binding with substantial apposition of hydrophobic surfaces on the two ligands can explain the observed affinity, kinetics, and specificity and the conformational effects of the binding reaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Zhao
- Department of Biological Sciences and the Institute for Biomolecular Structure and Function, Hunter College of the City University of New York, New York, 10021, USA
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Affiliation(s)
- G W Gooday
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Aberdeen, UK
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Lipke PN, Kurjan J. Sexual agglutination in budding yeasts: structure, function, and regulation of adhesion glycoproteins. Microbiol Rev 1992; 56:180-94. [PMID: 1579109 PMCID: PMC372860 DOI: 10.1128/mr.56.1.180-194.1992] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
The sexual agglutinins of the budding yeasts are cell adhesion proteins that promote aggregation of cells during mating. In each yeast species, complementary agglutinins are expressed by cells of opposite mating type that interact to mediate aggregation. Saccharomyces cerevisiae alpha-agglutinin and its analogs from other yeasts are single-subunit glycoproteins that contain N-linked and O-linked oligosaccharides. The N-glycosidase-sensitive carbohydrate is not necessary for activity. The proposed binding domain of alpha-agglutinin has features characteristic of the immunoglobulin fold structures of cell adhesion proteins of higher eukaryotes. The C-terminal region of alpha-agglutinin plays a role in anchoring the glycoprotein to the cell surface. The S. cerevisiae alpha-agglutinin and its analogs from other species contain multiple subunits; one or more binding subunits, which interact with the opposite agglutinin, are disulfide bonded to a core subunit, which mediates cell wall anchorage. The core subunits are composed of 80 to 95% O-linked carbohydrate. The binding subunits have less carbohydrate, and both carbohydrate and peptide play roles in binding. The alpha-agglutinin and alpha-agglutinin genes from S. cerevisiae have been cloned and shown to be regulated by the mating-type locus, MAT, and by pheromone induction. The agglutinins are necessary for mating under conditions that do not promote cell-cell contact. The role of the agglutinins therefore is to promote close interactions between cells of opposite mating type and possibly to facilitate the response to phermone, thus increasing the efficiency of mating. We speculate that they mediate enhanced response to sex pheromones by providing a synapse at the point of cell-cell contact, at which both pheromone secretion and cell fusion occur.
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Affiliation(s)
- P N Lipke
- Department of Biological Sciences, Hunter College, City University of New York, New York 10021
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Quantitation of alpha-factor internalization and response during the Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell cycle. Mol Cell Biol 1991. [PMID: 1656226 DOI: 10.1128/mcb.11.10.5251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The alpha-factor pheromone binds to specific cell surface receptors on Saccharomyces cerevisiae a cells. The pheromone is then internalized, and cell surface receptors are down-regulated. At the same time, a signal is transmitted that causes changes in gene expression and cell cycle arrest. We show that the ability of cells to internalize alpha-factor is constant throughout the cell cycle, a cells are also able to respond to pheromone throughout the cycle even though there is cell cycle modulation of the expression of two pheromone-inducible genes, FUS1 and STE2. Both of these genes are expressed less efficiently near or just after the START point of the cell cycle in response to alpha-factor. For STE2, the basal level of expression is modulated in the same manner.
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Zanolari B, Riezman H. Quantitation of alpha-factor internalization and response during the Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell cycle. Mol Cell Biol 1991; 11:5251-8. [PMID: 1656226 PMCID: PMC361575 DOI: 10.1128/mcb.11.10.5251-5258.1991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The alpha-factor pheromone binds to specific cell surface receptors on Saccharomyces cerevisiae a cells. The pheromone is then internalized, and cell surface receptors are down-regulated. At the same time, a signal is transmitted that causes changes in gene expression and cell cycle arrest. We show that the ability of cells to internalize alpha-factor is constant throughout the cell cycle, a cells are also able to respond to pheromone throughout the cycle even though there is cell cycle modulation of the expression of two pheromone-inducible genes, FUS1 and STE2. Both of these genes are expressed less efficiently near or just after the START point of the cell cycle in response to alpha-factor. For STE2, the basal level of expression is modulated in the same manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Zanolari
- Biocenter, University of Basel, Switzerland
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The AGA1 product is involved in cell surface attachment of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell adhesion glycoprotein a-agglutinin. Mol Cell Biol 1991. [PMID: 2072914 DOI: 10.1128/mcb.11.8.4196] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Saccharomyces cerevisiae a and alpha cells express the complementary cell surface glycoproteins a-agglutinin and alpha-agglutinin, respectively, which interact with one another to promote cellular aggregation during mating. Treatment of S. cerevisiae a cells with reducing agents releases the binding subunit of a-agglutinin, which has been purified and characterized; little biochemical information on the overall structure of a-agglutinin is available. To characterise a-agglutinin structure and function, we have used a genetic approach to clone an a-agglutinin structural gene (AGAI). Mutants with a-specific agglutination defects were isolated, the majority of which fell into a single complementation group, called aga1. The aga1 mutants showed wild-type pheromone production and response, efficient mating on solid medium, and a mating defect in liquid medium; these phenotypes are characteristic of agglutinin mutants. The AGA1 gene was cloned by complementation; the gene sequence indicated that it could encode a protein of 725 amino acids with high serine and threonine content, a putative N-terminal signal sequence, and a C-terminal hydrophobic sequence similar to signals for the attachment to glycosyl phosphatidylinositol anchors. Active a-agglutinin binding subunit is secreted by aga1 mutants, indicating that AGA1 is involved in cells surface attachment of a-agglutinin. This result suggests that AGA1 encodes a protein with functional similarity to the core subunits of a-agglutinin analogs from other budding yeasts. Unexpectedly, the AGA1 transcript was expressed and induced by pheromone in both a and alpha cells, suggesting that the a-specific expression of active a-agglutinin results only from a-specific regulation of the a-agglutinin binding subunit.
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Roy A, Lu CF, Marykwas DL, Lipke PN, Kurjan J. The AGA1 product is involved in cell surface attachment of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell adhesion glycoprotein a-agglutinin. Mol Cell Biol 1991; 11:4196-206. [PMID: 2072914 PMCID: PMC361242 DOI: 10.1128/mcb.11.8.4196-4206.1991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Saccharomyces cerevisiae a and alpha cells express the complementary cell surface glycoproteins a-agglutinin and alpha-agglutinin, respectively, which interact with one another to promote cellular aggregation during mating. Treatment of S. cerevisiae a cells with reducing agents releases the binding subunit of a-agglutinin, which has been purified and characterized; little biochemical information on the overall structure of a-agglutinin is available. To characterise a-agglutinin structure and function, we have used a genetic approach to clone an a-agglutinin structural gene (AGAI). Mutants with a-specific agglutination defects were isolated, the majority of which fell into a single complementation group, called aga1. The aga1 mutants showed wild-type pheromone production and response, efficient mating on solid medium, and a mating defect in liquid medium; these phenotypes are characteristic of agglutinin mutants. The AGA1 gene was cloned by complementation; the gene sequence indicated that it could encode a protein of 725 amino acids with high serine and threonine content, a putative N-terminal signal sequence, and a C-terminal hydrophobic sequence similar to signals for the attachment to glycosyl phosphatidylinositol anchors. Active a-agglutinin binding subunit is secreted by aga1 mutants, indicating that AGA1 is involved in cells surface attachment of a-agglutinin. This result suggests that AGA1 encodes a protein with functional similarity to the core subunits of a-agglutinin analogs from other budding yeasts. Unexpectedly, the AGA1 transcript was expressed and induced by pheromone in both a and alpha cells, suggesting that the a-specific expression of active a-agglutinin results only from a-specific regulation of the a-agglutinin binding subunit.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Roy
- Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027
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Nakajima H, Hirata A, Ogawa Y, Yonehara T, Yoda K, Yamasaki M. A cytoskeleton-related gene, uso1, is required for intracellular protein transport in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. J Cell Biol 1991; 113:245-60. [PMID: 2010462 PMCID: PMC2288946 DOI: 10.1083/jcb.113.2.245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 145] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The Saccharomyces cerevisiae mutant strains blocked in the protein secretion pathway are not able to induce sexual aggregation. We have utilized the defect of aggregation to concentrate the secretion-deficient cells and identified a new gene which functions in the process of intracellular protein transport. The new mutant, uso1, is temperature sensitive for growth and protein secretion. At the restrictive temperature (37 degrees C), uso1 mutant accumulated the core-glycosylated precursor form of the exported protein invertase in the cells. Ultrastructural study of the mutant fixed by the freeze-substitution method revealed expansion of the nuclear envelope lumen and accumulation of the ER at the restrictive temperature. Abnormally oriented bundles of microtubules were often found in the nucleus. The USO1 gene was cloned by complementation of the uso1 temperature-sensitive growth defect. DNA sequence analysis revealed a hydrophilic protein of 1790 amino acids with a COOH-terminal 1,100-amino acid-long alpha-helical structure characteristic of the coiled-coil rod region of the cytoskeleton-related proteins. These observations suggest that Uso1 protein plays a role as a cytoskeletal component in the protein transport from the ER to the later secretory compartments.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Nakajima
- Department of Agricultural Chemistry, University of Tokyo, Japan
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