Figure 12. FIGURE 12: Roles of calcineurin during pheromone response.

Upon stimulation with pheromone (α-factor in the model) entry of calcium promotes activation of calcineurin. To attenuate pheromone signaling, calcineurin acts at least at three levels: a) dephosphorylates Rod1 to promote endocytosis of the pheromone receptor; b) dephosphorylates Rga2, leading to decrease in Cdc42-GTP levels and attenuation of signaling through the Fus3 MAP kinase module; c) dephosphorylation and activation of the Ste12 inhibitor Dig2, to decrease pheromone-regulated specific gene transcription. Other targets downstream Fus3 are not included for simplicity.