The identification of small molecule inhibitors of the plant inositol phosphorylceramide synthase which demonstrate herbicidal activity.

Resistance to 157 different herbicides and 88% of known sites of action has been observed, with many weeds resistant to two or more modes. Coupled with tighter environmental regulation, this demonstrates the need to identify new modes of action and novel herbicides. The plant sphingolipid biosynthetic enzyme, inositol phosphorylceramide synthase (IPCS), has been identified as a novel, putative herbicide target. The non-mammalian nature of this enzyme offers the potential of discovering plant specific inhibitory compounds with minimal impact on animals and humans, perhaps leading to the development of new non-toxic herbicides. The best characterised and most highly expressed isoform of the enzyme in the model-dicot Arabidopsis, AtIPCS2, was formatted into a yeast-based assay which was then utilized to screen a proprietary library of over 11,000 compounds provided by Bayer AG. Hits from this screen were validated in a secondary in vitro enzyme assay. These studies led to the identification of a potent inhibitor that showed selectivity for AtIPCS2 over the yeast orthologue, and activity against Arabidopsis seedlings. This work highlighted the use of a yeast-based screening assay to discover herbicidal compounds and the status of the plant IPCS as a novel herbicidal target.

Kti12, a PSTK-like tRNA dependent ATPase essential for tRNA modification by Elongator.

Posttranscriptional RNA modifications occur in all domains of life. Modifications of anticodon bases are of particular importance for ribosomal decoding and proteome homeostasis. The Elongator complex modifies uridines in the wobble position and is highly conserved in eukaryotes. Despite recent insights into Elongator's architecture, the structure and function of its regulatory factor Kti12 have remained elusive. Here, we present the crystal structure of Kti12's nucleotide hydrolase domain trapped in a transition state of ATP hydrolysis. The structure reveals striking similarities to an O-phosphoseryl-tRNA kinase involved in the selenocysteine pathway. Both proteins employ similar mechanisms of tRNA binding and show tRNASec-dependent ATPase activity. In addition, we demonstrate that Kti12 binds directly to Elongator and that ATP hydrolysis is crucial for Elongator to maintain proper tRNA anticodon modification levels in vivo. In summary, our data reveal a hitherto uncharacterized link between two translational control pathways that regulate selenocysteine incorporation and affect ribosomal tRNA selection via specific tRNA modifications.

The type VI secretion system deploys antifungal effectors against microbial competitors.

Interactions between bacterial and fungal cells shape many polymicrobial communities. Bacteria elaborate diverse strategies to interact and compete with other organisms, including the deployment of protein secretion systems. The type VI secretion system (T6SS) delivers toxic effector proteins into host eukaryotic cells and competitor bacterial cells, but, surprisingly, T6SS-delivered effectors targeting fungal cells have not been reported. Here we show that the 'antibacterial' T6SS of Serratia marcescens can act against fungal cells, including pathogenic Candida species, and identify the previously undescribed effector proteins responsible. These antifungal effectors, Tfe1 and Tfe2, have distinct impacts on the target cell, but both can ultimately cause fungal cell death. 'In competition' proteomics analysis revealed that T6SS-mediated delivery of Tfe2 disrupts nutrient uptake and amino acid metabolism in fungal cells, and leads to the induction of autophagy. Intoxication by Tfe1, in contrast, causes a loss of plasma membrane potential. Our findings extend the repertoire of the T6SS and suggest that antifungal T6SSs represent widespread and important determinants of the outcome of bacterial-fungal interactions.

Use of a Yeast tRNase Killer Toxin to Diagnose Kti12 Motifs Required for tRNA Modification by Elongator.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells are killed by zymocin, a tRNase ribotoxin complex from Kluyveromyces lactis, which cleaves anticodons and inhibits protein synthesis. Zymocin's action requires specific chemical modification of uridine bases in the anticodon wobble position (U34) by the Elongator complex (Elp1-Elp6). Hence, loss of anticodon modification in mutants lacking Elongator or related KTI (K. lactis Toxin Insensitive) genes protects against tRNA cleavage and confers resistance to the toxin. Here, we show that zymocin can be used as a tool to genetically analyse KTI12, a gene previously shown to code for an Elongator partner protein. From a kti12 mutant pool of zymocin survivors, we identify motifs in Kti12 that are functionally directly coupled to Elongator activity. In addition, shared requirement of U34 modifications for nonsense and missense tRNA suppression (SUP4; SOE1) strongly suggests that Kti12 and Elongator cooperate to assure proper tRNA functioning. We show that the Kti12 motifs are conserved in plant ortholog DRL1/ELO4 from Arabidopsis thaliana and seem to be involved in binding of cofactors (e.g., nucleotides, calmodulin). Elongator interaction defects triggered by mutations in these motifs correlate with phenotypes typical for loss of U34 modification. Thus, tRNA modification by Elongator appears to require physical contact with Kti12, and our preliminary data suggest that metabolic signals may affect proper communication between them.

A Functional Link Between Bir1 and the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Ctf19 Kinetochore Complex Revealed Through Quantitative Fitness Analysis.

The chromosomal passenger complex (CPC) is a key regulator of eukaryotic cell division, consisting of the protein kinase Aurora B/Ipl1 in association with its activator (INCENP/Sli15) and two additional proteins (Survivin/Bir1 and Borealin/Nbl1). Here, we report a genome-wide genetic interaction screen in Saccharomyces cerevisiae using the bir1-17 mutant, identifying through quantitative fitness analysis deletion mutations that act as enhancers and suppressors. Gene knockouts affecting the Ctf19 kinetochore complex were identified as the strongest enhancers of bir1-17, while mutations affecting the large ribosomal subunit or the mRNA nonsense-mediated decay pathway caused strong phenotypic suppression. Thus, cells lacking a functional Ctf19 complex become highly dependent on Bir1 function and vice versa. The negative genetic interaction profiles of bir1-17 and the cohesin mutant mcd1-1 showed considerable overlap, underlining the strong functional connection between sister chromatid cohesion and chromosome biorientation. Loss of some Ctf19 components, such as Iml3 or Chl4, impacted differentially on bir1-17 compared with mutations affecting other CPC components: despite the synthetic lethality shown by either iml3∆ or chl4∆ in combination with bir1-17, neither gene knockout showed any genetic interaction with either ipl1-321 or sli15-3 Our data therefore imply a specific functional connection between the Ctf19 complex and Bir1 that is not shared with Ipl1.

Urmylation and tRNA thiolation functions of ubiquitin-like Uba4·Urm1 systems are conserved from yeast to man.

The ubiquitin-like protein Urm1 from budding yeast and its E1-like activator Uba4 have dual roles in protein urmylation and tRNA thiolation pathways. To study whether these are conserved among eukaryotes, we used gene shuffles to replace the yeast proteins by their human counterparts, hURM1 and hUBA4/MOCS3. As judged from biochemical and genetical assays, hURM1 and hUBA4 are functional in yeast, albeit at reduced efficiencies. They mediate urmylation of the peroxiredoxin Ahp1, a known urmylation target in yeast, and support tRNA thiolation. Similar to hUBA4, yeast Uba4 itself is modified by Urm1 and hURM1 suggesting target overlap between eukaryal urmylation pathways. In sum, our study shows that dual-function ubiquitin-like Urm1·Uba4 systems are conserved and exchangeable between human and yeast cells.

Phosphorylation of Elp1 by Hrr25 is required for elongator-dependent tRNA modification in yeast.

Elongator is a conserved protein complex comprising six different polypeptides that has been ascribed a wide range of functions, but which is now known to be required for modification of uridine residues in the wobble position of a subset of tRNAs in yeast, plants, worms and mammals. In previous work, we showed that Elongator's largest subunit (Elp1; also known as Iki3) was phosphorylated and implicated the yeast casein kinase I Hrr25 in Elongator function. Here we report identification of nine in vivo phosphorylation sites within Elp1 and show that four of these, clustered close to the Elp1 C-terminus and adjacent to a region that binds tRNA, are important for Elongator's tRNA modification function. Hrr25 protein kinase directly modifies Elp1 on two sites (Ser-1198 and Ser-1202) and through analyzing non-phosphorylatable (alanine) and acidic, phosphomimic substitutions at Ser-1198, Ser-1202 and Ser-1209, we provide evidence that phosphorylation plays a positive role in the tRNA modification function of Elongator and may regulate the interaction of Elongator both with its accessory protein Kti12 and with Hrr25 kinase.

The diphthamide modification pathway from Saccharomyces cerevisiae--revisited.

Diphthamide is a conserved modification in archaeal and eukaryal translation elongation factor 2 (EF2). Its name refers to the target function for diphtheria toxin, the disease-causing agent that, through ADP ribosylation of diphthamide, causes irreversible inactivation of EF2 and cell death. Although this clearly emphasizes a pathobiological role for diphthamide, its physiological function is unclear, and precisely why cells need EF2 to contain diphthamide is hardly understood. Nonetheless, the conservation of diphthamide biosynthesis together with syndromes (i.e. ribosomal frame-shifting, embryonic lethality, neurodegeneration and cancer) typical of mutant cells that cannot make it strongly suggests that diphthamide-modified EF2 occupies an important and translation-related role in cell proliferation and development. Whether this is structural and/or regulatory remains to be seen. However, recent progress in dissecting the diphthamide gene network (DPH1-DPH7) from the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has significantly advanced our understanding of the mechanisms required to initiate and complete diphthamide synthesis on EF2. Here, we review recent developments in the field that not only have provided novel, previously overlooked and unexpected insights into the pathway and the biochemical players required for diphthamide synthesis but also are likely to foster innovative studies into the potential regulation of diphthamide, and importantly, its ill-defined biological role.

A conserved and essential basic region mediates tRNA binding to the Elp1 subunit of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Elongator complex.

Elongator is a conserved, multi-protein complex discovered in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, loss of which confers a range of pleiotropic phenotypes. Elongator in higher eukaryotes is required for normal growth and development and a mutation in the largest subunit of human Elongator (Elp1) causes familial dysautonomia, a severe recessive neuropathy. Elongator promotes addition of mcm(5) and ncm(5) modifications to uridine in the tRNA anticodon 'wobble' position in both yeast and higher eukaryotes. Since these modifications are required for the tRNAs to function efficiently, a translation defect caused by hypomodified tRNAs may therefore underlie the variety of phenotypes associated with Elongator dysfunction. The Elp1 carboxy-terminal domain contains a highly conserved arginine/lysine-rich region that resembles a nuclear localization sequence (NLS). Using alanine substitution mutagenesis, we show that this region is essential for Elongator's function in tRNA wobble uridine modification. However, rather than acting to determine the nucleo-cytoplasmic distribution of Elongator, we find that the basic region plays a critical role in a novel interaction between tRNA and the Elp1 carboxy-terminal domain. Thus the conserved basic region in Elp1 may be essential for tRNA wobble uridine modification by acting as tRNA binding motif.

Phosphorylation of Sli15 by Ipl1 is important for proper CPC localization and chromosome stability in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The chromosomal passenger complex (CPC) is a key regulator of eukaryotic cell division, consisting of the protein kinase Aurora B/Ipl1 in association with its activator (INCENP/Sli15) and two additional proteins (Survivin/Bir1 and Borealin/Nbl1). Here we have identified multiple sites of CPC autophosphorylation on yeast Sli15 that are located within its central microtubule-binding domain and examined the functional significance of their phosphorylation by Ipl1 through mutation of these sites, either to non-phosphorylatable alanine (sli15-20A) or to acidic residues to mimic constitutive phosphorylation (sli15-20D). Both mutant sli15 alleles confer chromosome instability, but this is mediated neither by changes in the capacity of Sli15 to activate Ipl1 kinase nor by decreased efficiency of chromosome biorientation, a key process in cell division that requires CPC function. Instead, we find that mimicking constitutive phosphorylation of Sli15 on the Ipl1 phosphorylation sites causes delocalization of the CPC in metaphase, whereas blocking phosphorylation of Sli15 on the Ipl1 sites drives excessive localization of Sli15 to the mitotic spindle in pre-anaphase cells. Consistent with these results, direct interaction of Sli15 with microtubules in vitro is greatly reduced either following phosphorylation by Ipl1 or when constitutive phosphorylation at the Ipl1-dependent phosphorylation sites is mimicked by aspartate or glutamate substitutions. Furthermore, we find that mimicking Ipl1 phosphorylation of Sli15 interferes with the 'tension checkpoint'--the CPC-dependent mechanism through which cells activate the spindle assembly checkpoint to delay anaphase in the absence of tension on kinetochore-microtubule attachments. Ipl1-dependent phosphorylation of Sli15 therefore inhibits its association with microtubules both in vivo and in vitro and may negatively regulate the tension checkpoint mechanism.

The essential roles of cytidine diphosphate-diacylglycerol synthase in bloodstream form Trypanosoma brucei.

Lipid metabolism in Trypanosoma brucei, the causative agent of African sleeping sickness, differs from its human host in several fundamental ways. This has lead to the validation of a plethora of novel drug targets, giving hope of novel chemical intervention against this neglected disease. Cytidine diphosphate diacylglycerol (CDP-DAG) is a central lipid intermediate for several pathways in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes, being produced by CDP-DAG synthase (CDS). However, nothing is known about the single T. brucei CDS gene (Tb927.7.220/EC 2.7.7.41) or its activity. In this study we show TbCDS is functional by complementation of a non-viable yeast CDS null strain and that it is essential in the bloodstream form of the parasite via a conditional knockout. The TbCDS conditional knockout showed morphological changes including a cell-cycle arrest due in part to kinetoplast segregation defects. Biochemical phenotyping of TbCDS conditional knockout showed drastically altered lipid metabolism where reducing levels of phosphatidylinositol detrimentally impacted on glycoylphosphatidylinositol biosynthesis. These studies also suggest that phosphatidylglycerol synthesized via the phosphatidylglycerol-phosphate synthase is not synthesized from CDP-DAG, as was previously thought. TbCDS was shown to localized the ER and Golgi, probably to provide CDP-DAG for the phosphatidylinositol synthases.

Decoding the biosynthesis and function of diphthamide, an enigmatic modification of translation elongation factor 2 (EF2)

Diphthamide is a highly conserved modification of archaeal and eukaryal translation elongation factor 2 (EF2) and yet why cells need EF2 to contain diphthamide is unclear. In yeast, the first steps of diphthamide synthesis and the genes (DPH1-DPH5) required to form the intermediate diphthine are well-documented. However, the last step, amidation of diphthine to diphthamide, had largely been ill-defined. Remarkably, through mining genome-wide synthetic gene array (SGA) and chemical genomics databases, recent studies by Uthman et al. [PLoS Genetics (2013) 9, e1003334] and Su et al. [Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA (2012) 109, 19983-19987] have identified two more diphthamide players, DPH6 and DPH7. Consistent with roles in the amidation step, dph6 and dph7 deletion strains fail to complete diphthamide synthesis and accumulate diphthine-modified EF2. In contrast to Dph6, the catalytically relevant amidase, Dph7 appears to be regulatory. As shown by Uthman et al., it promotes dissociation of diphthine synthase (Dph5) from EF2, allowing diphthine amidation by Dph6 to occur and thereby coupling diphthine synthesis to the terminal step in the pathway. Remarkably, the study by Uthman et al. suggests that Dph5 has a novel role as an EF2 inhibitor that affects cell growth when diphthamide synthesis is blocked or incomplete and, importantly, shows that diphthamide promotes the accuracy of EF2 performance during translation.

Insights into diphthamide, key diphtheria toxin effector.

Diphtheria toxin (DT) inhibits eukaryotic translation elongation factor 2 (eEF2) by ADP-ribosylation in a fashion that requires diphthamide, a modified histidine residue on eEF2. In budding yeast, diphthamide formation involves seven genes, DPH1-DPH7. In an effort to further study diphthamide synthesis and interrelation among the Dph proteins, we found, by expression in E. coli and co-immune precipitation in yeast, that Dph1 and Dph2 interact and that they form a complex with Dph3. Protein-protein interaction mapping shows that Dph1-Dph3 complex formation can be dissected by progressive DPH1 gene truncations. This identifies N- and C-terminal domains on Dph1 that are crucial for diphthamide synthesis, DT action and cytotoxicity of sordarin, another microbial eEF2 inhibitor. Intriguingly, dph1 truncation mutants are sensitive to overexpression of DPH5, the gene necessary to synthesize diphthine from the first diphthamide pathway intermediate produced by Dph1-Dph3. This is in stark contrast to dph6 mutants, which also lack the ability to form diphthamide but are resistant to growth inhibition by excess Dph5 levels. As judged from site-specific mutagenesis, the amidation reaction itself relies on a conserved ATP binding domain in Dph6 that, when altered, blocks diphthamide formation and confers resistance to eEF2 inhibition by sordarin.

The amidation step of diphthamide biosynthesis in yeast requires DPH6, a gene identified through mining the DPH1-DPH5 interaction network.

Diphthamide is a highly modified histidine residue in eukaryal translation elongation factor 2 (eEF2) that is the target for irreversible ADP ribosylation by diphtheria toxin (DT). In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the initial steps of diphthamide biosynthesis are well characterized and require the DPH1-DPH5 genes. However, the last pathway step-amidation of the intermediate diphthine to diphthamide-is ill-defined. Here we mine the genetic interaction landscapes of DPH1-DPH5 to identify a candidate gene for the elusive amidase (YLR143w/DPH6) and confirm involvement of a second gene (YBR246w/DPH7) in the amidation step. Like dph1-dph5, dph6 and dph7 mutants maintain eEF2 forms that evade inhibition by DT and sordarin, a diphthamide-dependent antifungal. Moreover, mass spectrometry shows that dph6 and dph7 mutants specifically accumulate diphthine-modified eEF2, demonstrating failure to complete the final amidation step. Consistent with an expected requirement for ATP in diphthine amidation, Dph6 contains an essential adenine nucleotide hydrolase domain and binds to eEF2. Dph6 is therefore a candidate for the elusive amidase, while Dph7 apparently couples diphthine synthase (Dph5) to diphthine amidation. The latter conclusion is based on our observation that dph7 mutants show drastically upregulated interaction between Dph5 and eEF2, indicating that their association is kept in check by Dph7. Physiologically, completion of diphthamide synthesis is required for optimal translational accuracy and cell growth, as indicated by shared traits among the dph mutants including increased ribosomal -1 frameshifting and altered responses to translation inhibitors. Through identification of Dph6 and Dph7 as components required for the amidation step of the diphthamide pathway, our work paves the way for a detailed mechanistic understanding of diphthamide formation.

Temperature-sensitive ipl1-2/Aurora B mutation is suppressed by mutations in TOR complex 1 via the Glc7/PP1 phosphatase.

Ipl1/Aurora B is the catalytic subunit of a complex that is required for chromosome segregation and nuclear division. Before anaphase, Ipl1 localizes to kinetochores, where it is required to establish proper kinetochore-microtubule associations and regulate the spindle assembly checkpoint. The protein phosphatase Glc7/PP1 opposes Ipl1 for some of these activities. To more thoroughly characterize the Glc7 phosphatase that opposes Ipl1, we have identified mutations that suppress the thermosensitivity of an ipl1-2 mutant. In addition to mutations in genes previously associated with ipl1 suppression, we recovered a null mutant in TCO89, which encodes a subunit of the TOR complex 1 (TORC1), the conserved rapamycin-sensitive kinase activity that regulates cell growth in response to nutritional status. The temperature sensitivity of ipl1-2 can also be suppressed by null mutation of TOR1 or by administration of pharmacological TORC1 inhibitors, indicating that reduced TORC1 activity is responsible for the suppression. Suppression of the ipl1-2 growth defect is accompanied by increased fidelity of chromosome segregation and increased phosphorylation of the Ipl1 substrates histone H3 and Dam1. Nuclear Glc7 levels are reduced in a tco89 mutant, suggesting that TORC1 activity is required for the nuclear accumulation of Glc7. In addition, several mutant GLC7 alleles that suppress the temperature sensitivity of ipl1-2 exhibit negative synthetic genetic interactions with TORC1 mutants. Together, our results suggest that TORC1 positively regulates the Glc7 activity that opposes Ipl1 and provide a mechanism to tie nutritional status with mitotic regulation.

Ipl1-dependent phosphorylation of Dam1 is reduced by tension applied on kinetochores.

The conserved Aurora B protein kinase (Ipl1 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae) is essential for ensuring that sister kinetochores become attached to microtubules from opposite spindle poles (bi-orientation) before anaphase onset. When sister chromatids become attached to microtubules from a single pole, Aurora B/Ipl1 facilitates turnover of kinetochore-microtubule attachments. This process requires phosphorylation by Aurora B/Ipl1 of kinetochore components such as Dam1 in yeast. Once bi-orientation is established and tension is applied on kinetochores, Aurora B/Ipl1 must stop promoting this turnover, otherwise correct attachment would never be stabilised. How this is achieved remains elusive: it might be due to dephosphorylation of Aurora B/Ipl1 substrates at kinetochores, or might take place independently, for example because of conformational changes in kinetochores. Here, we show that Ipl1-dependent phosphorylation at crucial sites on Dam1 is maximal during S phase and minimal during metaphase, matching the cell cycle window when chromosome bi-orientation occurs. Intriguingly, when we reduced tension at kinetochores through failure to establish sister chromatid cohesion, Dam1 phosphorylation persisted in metaphase-arrested cells. We propose that Aurora B/Ipl1-facilitated bi-orientation is stabilised in response to tension at kinetochores by dephosphorylation of Dam1, resulting in termination of kinetochore-microtubule attachment turnover.

Distinct subsets of Sit4 holophosphatases are required for inhibition of Saccharomyces cerevisiae growth by rapamycin and zymocin.

Protein phosphatase Sit4 is required for growth inhibition of Saccharomyces cerevisiae by the antifungals rapamycin and zymocin. Here, we show that the rapamycin effector Tap42, which interacts with Sit4, is dispensable for zymocin action. Although Tap42 binding-deficient sit4 mutants are resistant to zymocin, these mutations also block interaction between Sit4 and the Sit4-associating proteins Sap185 and Sap190, previously shown to mediate zymocin toxicity. Among the four different SAP genes, we found that SAP190 deletions specifically induce rapamycin resistance but that this phenotype is reversed in the additional absence of SAP155. Similarly, the rapamycin resistance of an rrd1Delta mutant lacking the Sit4 interactor Rrd1 specifically requires the Sit4/Sap190 complex. Thus, Sit4/Sap190 and Sit4/Sap155 holophosphatases apparently play opposing roles following rapamycin treatment, although rapamycin inhibition is operational in the absence of all Sap family members or Sit4. We further identified a Sit4-interacting region on Sap185 in sap190Delta cells that mediates Sit4/Sap185 complex formation and is essential for dephosphorylation of Elp1, a subunit of the Elongator complex. This suggests that Sit4/Sap185 and Sit4/Sap190 holophosphatases promote Elongator functions, a notion supported by data showing that their inactivation eliminates Elongator-dependent processes, including tRNA suppression by SUP4 and tRNA cleavage by zymocin.

Elongator function depends on antagonistic regulation by casein kinase Hrr25 and protein phosphatase Sit4.

In yeast, the role for the Elongator complex in tRNA anticodon modification is affected by phosphorylation of Elongator subunit Elp1. Thus, hyperphosphorylation of Elp1 due to inactivation of protein phosphatase Sit4 correlates with Elongator-minus phenotypes including resistance towards zymocin, a tRNase cleaving anticodons of Elongator-dependent tRNAs. Here we show that zymocin resistance of casein kinase hrr25 mutants associates with hypophosphorylation of Elp1 and that nonsense suppression by the Elongator-dependent SUP4 tRNA is abolished in hrr25 or sit4 mutants. Thus changes that perturb the evenly balanced ratio between hyper- and hypophosphorylated Elp1 forms present in wild-type cells lead to Elongator inactivation. Antagonistic roles for Hrr25 and Sit4 in Elongator function are further supported by our data that Sit4 inactivation is capable of restoring both zymocin sensitivity and normal ratios between the two Elp1 forms in hrr25 mutants. Hrr25 binds to Elongator in a fashion dependent on Elongator partner Kti12. Like sit4 mutants, overexpression of Kti12 triggers Elp1 hyperphosphorylation. Intriguingly, this effect of Kti12 is blocked by hrr25 mutations, which also show enhanced binding of Kti12 to Elongator. Collectively, our data suggest that rather than directly targeting Elp1, the Hrr25 kinase indirectly affects Elp1 phosphorylation states through control of Sit4-dependent dephosphorylation of Elp1.

Efficient chromosome biorientation and the tension checkpoint in Saccharomyces cerevisiae both require Bir1.

Accurate chromosome segregation requires the capture of sister kinetochores by microtubules from opposite spindle poles prior to the initiation of anaphase, a state termed chromosome biorientation. In the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the conserved protein kinase Ipl1 (Aurora B in metazoans) is critical for ensuring correct chromosomal alignment. Ipl1 associates with its activators Sli15 (INCENP), Nbl1 (Borealin), and Bir1 (Survivin), but while Sli15 clearly functions with Ipl1 to promote chromosome biorientation, the role of Bir1 has been uncertain. Using a temperature-sensitive bir1 mutant (bir1-17), we show that Bir1 is needed to permit efficient chromosome biorientation. However, once established, chromosome biorientation is maintained in bir1-17 cells at the restrictive temperature. Ipl1 is partially delocalized in bir1-17 cells, and its protein kinase activity is markedly reduced under nonpermissive conditions. bir1-17 cells arrest normally in response to microtubule depolymerization but fail to delay anaphase when sister kinetochore tension is reduced. Thus, Bir1 is required for the tension checkpoint. Despite their robust mitotic arrest in response to nocodazole, bir1-17 cells are hypersensitive to microtubule-depolymerizing drugs and show a more severe biorientation defect on recovery from nocodazole treatment. The role of Bir1 therefore may become more critical when spindle formation is delayed.

A versatile partner of eukaryotic protein complexes that is involved in multiple biological processes: Kti11/Dph3.

The Kluyveromyces lactis killer toxin zymocin insensitive 11 (KTI11) gene from Saccharomyces cerevisiae is allelic with the diphthamide synthesis 3 (DPH3) locus. Here, we present evidence that the KTI11 gene product is a versatile partner of proteins and operates in multiple biological processes. Notably, Kti11 immune precipitates contain Elp2 and Elp5, two subunits of the Elongator complex which is involved in transcription, tRNA modification and zymocin toxicity. KTI11 deletion phenocopies Elongator-minus cells and causes antisuppression of nonsense and missense suppressor tRNAs (SUP4, SOE1), zymocin resistance and protection against the tRNase attack of zymocin. In addition and unlike Elongator mutants, kti11 mutants resist diphtheria toxin (DT), protect against ADP-ribosylation of eukaryotic translation elongation factor 2 (eEF2) by DT and induce resistance against sordarin, an eEF2 poisoning antifungal. The latter phenotype applies to all diphthamide mutants (dph1-dph5) tested and Kti11/Dph3 physically interacts with diphthamide synthesis factors Dph1 and Dph2, presumably as part of a trimeric complex. Moreover, we present a separation of function mutation in KTI11, kti11-1, which dissociates zymocin resistance from DT sensitivity. It encodes a C-terminal Kti11 truncation that almost entirely abolishes Elongator interaction without affecting association with Kti13, another Kti11 partner protein.