Skip to main content
PMC home page
Molecular and Cellular Biology logoLink to Molecular and Cellular Biology
. 1986 Oct;6(10):3490–3497. doi: 10.1128/mcb.6.10.3490

Saccharomyces cerevisiae nuclear fusion requires prior activation by alpha factor.

M D Rose, B R Price, G R Fink
PMCID: PMC367097  PMID: 3540592

Abstract

We have developed a protocol for efficient fusion of spheroplasts of the same mating type. Nuclear fusion in this whole-cell system is also efficient and closely parallels nuclear fusion in heterosexual mating of intact cells. In the spheroplast fusion system, nuclear fusion is dependent on both the KAR1 gene and prior exposure to alpha factor. The major products of nuclear fusion in the spheroplast fusion assay were true diploids that were homozygous at the mating-type locus. An additional 10% of the products were cells of ploidy greater than diploid. The dependence of nuclear fusion on alpha factor treatment could not be replaced by synchronization in G1 by mutations in CDC28 and CDC35 or by prior arrest in stationary phase. These data suggest that nuclear fusion is not a constitutive function of the nucleus, but rather is specifically induced by mating hormone.

Full text

PDF
3490

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Byers B., Goetsch L. Behavior of spindles and spindle plaques in the cell cycle and conjugation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. J Bacteriol. 1975 Oct;124(1):511–523. doi: 10.1128/jb.124.1.511-523.1975. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Byers B., Goetsch L. Duplication of spindle plaques and integration of the yeast cell cycle. Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol. 1974;38:123–131. doi: 10.1101/sqb.1974.038.01.016. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Conde J., Fink G. R. A mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae defective for nuclear fusion. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1976 Oct;73(10):3651–3655. doi: 10.1073/pnas.73.10.3651. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Delgado M. A., Conde J. Benomyl prevents nuclear fusion in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mol Gen Genet. 1984;193(1):188–189. doi: 10.1007/BF00327435. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Dutcher S. K., Hartwell L. H. Genes that act before conjugation to prepare the Saccharomyces cerevisiae nucleus for caryogamy. Cell. 1983 May;33(1):203–210. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(83)90349-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Dutcher S. K., Hartwell L. H. The role of S. cerevisiae cell division cycle genes in nuclear fusion. Genetics. 1982 Feb;100(2):175–184. doi: 10.1093/genetics/100.2.175. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Dutcher S. K. Internuclear transfer of genetic information in kar1-1/KAR1 heterokaryons in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mol Cell Biol. 1981 Mar;1(3):245–253. doi: 10.1128/mcb.1.3.245. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Fink G. R., Styles C. A. Gene conversion of deletions in the his4 region of yeast. Genetics. 1974 Jun;77(2):231–244. doi: 10.1093/genetics/77.2.231. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Harashima S., Takagi A., Oshima Y. Transformation of protoplasted yeast cells is directly associated with cell fusion. Mol Cell Biol. 1984 Apr;4(4):771–778. doi: 10.1128/mcb.4.4.771. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Hereford L. M., Hartwell L. H. Sequential gene function in the initiation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae DNA synthesis. J Mol Biol. 1974 Apr 15;84(3):445–461. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(74)90451-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Hinnen A., Hicks J. B., Fink G. R. Transformation of yeast. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1978 Apr;75(4):1929–1933. doi: 10.1073/pnas.75.4.1929. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Ito H., Fukuda Y., Murata K., Kimura A. Transformation of intact yeast cells treated with alkali cations. J Bacteriol. 1983 Jan;153(1):163–168. doi: 10.1128/jb.153.1.163-168.1983. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Klar A. J. Mating-Type Functions for Meiosis and Sporulation in Yeast Act through Cytoplasm. Genetics. 1980 Mar;94(3):597–605. doi: 10.1093/genetics/94.3.597. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Lancashire W. E., Mattoon J. R. Cytoduction: a tool for mitochondrial genetic studies in yeast. Utilization of the nuclear-fusion mutation kar 1-1 for transfer of drug r and mit genomes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mol Gen Genet. 1979 Mar 5;170(3):333–344. doi: 10.1007/BF00267067. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Murray A. W., Szostak J. W. Pedigree analysis of plasmid segregation in yeast. Cell. 1983 Oct;34(3):961–970. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(83)90553-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Polaina J., Conde J. Genes involved in the control of nuclear fusion during the sexual cycle of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mol Gen Genet. 1982;186(2):253–258. doi: 10.1007/BF00331858. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Reed S. I. The selection of S. cerevisiae mutants defective in the start event of cell division. Genetics. 1980 Jul;95(3):561–577. doi: 10.1093/genetics/95.3.561. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Reid B. J., Hartwell L. H. Regulation of mating in the cell cycle of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. J Cell Biol. 1977 Nov;75(2 Pt 1):355–365. doi: 10.1083/jcb.75.2.355. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Rogers D., Bussey H. Fidelity of conjugation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mol Gen Genet. 1978 Jun 14;162(2):173–182. doi: 10.1007/BF00267874. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Rose M., Winston F. Identification of a Ty insertion within the coding sequence of the S. cerevisiae URA3 gene. Mol Gen Genet. 1984;193(3):557–560. doi: 10.1007/BF00382100. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. van Solingen P., van der Plaat J. B. Fusion of yeast spheroplasts. J Bacteriol. 1977 May;130(2):946–947. doi: 10.1128/jb.130.2.946-947.1977. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Molecular and Cellular Biology are provided here courtesy of Taylor & Francis

RESOURCES