A nitrogen-limited, glucose-repressed, continuous culture of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Glucose-repressed growth of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was analysed in a nitrogen-limited continuous culture at different dilution rates (D). The glucose consumption of the yeast decreased from 3.4 g g-1 h-1 to 3.0 g g-1 h-1 when D was decreased from 0.3 h-1 to 0.15 h-1. No transcripts of the SUC2 and HXK1 genes, encoding, respectively, invertase and hexokinase isoenzyme 1, could be detected. Because both genes are regulated by glucose repression at the transcriptional level, this confirmed that the culture was glucose repressed at every D. During the decrease in D, no change in the activities or mRNA levels of key enzymes in carbon metabolism was observed, except for alcohol dehydrogenases I and II and phosphoglucomutase. These enzymes increased in activity and/or mRNA level when D was decreased, which was also observed in glucose- and galactose-limited continuous cultures. This demonstrates that the expression levels of alcohol dehydrogenases I and II, and also phosphoglucomutase, are coupled to the growth rate of the organism. A comparison between the alcohol dehydrogenase II activity in glucose- and nitrogen-limited continuous cultures demonstrated that the growth rate contributes as much to repression of alcohol dehydrogenase II activity as does glucose. Both the glucose consumption and the activity of the glycolytic enzymes were relatively constant when D was decreased and, as a consequence, the concentrations of intracellular metabolites remained constant. A slight decrease in the glucose 6-phosphate concentration was observed, which could be caused by the slight decrease in glucose consumption at low D values.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Regulation of glycolytic enzymes and the Crabtree effect in galactose-limited continuous cultures of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

In order to determine whether the changes in the activities and mRNA levels of enzymes involved in intermediary carbon metabolism previously observed in glucose-limited continuous cultures (Sierkstra et al., 1992a) were glucose specific, we have analysed their regulation in a galactose-limited continuous culture of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The Vmax of the galactose uptake system was shown to be dilution rate (D) dependent, comparable with the high-affinity glucose uptake. The maximum uptake was observed at D 0.2 h-1 (0.25 mmol min-1 per g) and the minimum uptake (0.1 mmol min-1 per g) at D 0.05 h-1 and 0.3 h-1. The aerobic fermentation of galactose occurred at D 0.275-0.3 h-1 which is identical to the results obtained in glucose-limited continuous cultures of this strain. Because galactose is not a repressing carbon source, this demonstrates that the Crabtree effect is not mediated by, or in any way related to glucose repression. Moreover, invertase and hexokinase I mRNA levels (both subject to glucose repression at the transcriptional level) were present when the yeast produced ethanol in galactose- and glucose-limited continuous cultures. In glucose-limited continuous cultures a decrease in alcohol dehydrogenase (I and II) mRNA levels and activity and phosphoglucomutase activity was observed with increasing dilution rates. In addition, at D 0.3 h-1, when the yeast produced ethanol, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and pyruvate decarboxylase were induced and a decrease in respiration was observed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The glucose-6-phosphate-isomerase reaction is essential for normal glucose repression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Wild-type Saccharomyces cerevisiae and a strain carrying a deletion in the glucose-6-phosphate-isomerase gene (pgi1) were grown in carbon-limited continuous cultures on a mixture of fructose and galactose. Pulses of glucose, fructose and galactose were given to these cultures to investigate whether the pgi1 strain was capable of normal glucose repression. Glucose and galactose pulses inhibited fructose consumption and thus glycolysis in the pgi1 strain by a combination of competition between glucose and fructose at the uptake and/or phosphorylation level and inhibition of fructose uptake and/or phosphorylation by glucose 6-phosphate. Fructose pulses administered to the pgi1 strain transiently decreased the glycolytic flux downstream of fructose-1,6-bisphosphate. Transcriptional induction of the PDC1 gene (encoding pyruvate decarboxylase) was observed after glucose or galactose pulses were applied to the pgi1 strain, demonstrating that metabolism of these sugars beyond glucose 6-phosphate is dispensable for PDC1 induction. Fructose also induced PDC1 transcription, indicating that intracellular sugars could act as trigger for PDC1 induction or, alternatively, that two inductors are present. In contrast to the wild-type transcriptional inhibition of the glucose-repressible genes, HXK1 and GAL10 (encoding hexokinase isoenzyme 1 and uridine diphosphoglucose-4-epimerase, respectively) did not occur upon addition of glucose or fructose to the pgi1 mutant. Transcriptional repression was observed after application of the fructose pulse when the yeast had resumed metabolism of fructose. These results demonstrate that the initial signal for catabolite repression is not generated by high sugar concentrations or high concentrations of intermediates; moreover a simple role for the hexokinases can also be excluded. The absence of an increased glycolytic flux in the pgi1 mutant after administration of the sugar pulses while the concentrations of sugar and glycolytic intermediates were high, suggests that the initial signal for glucose repression could be linked to an increased glycolytic flux. The occurrence of PDC1 induction in the pgi1 strain while GAL10/HXKI repression is absent, demonstrates that the initial signals for catabolite induction and catabolite repression are different.

Molecular cloning of a gene involved in glucose sensing in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Cells of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae display a wide range of glucose-induced regulatory phenomena, including glucose-induced activation of the RAS-adenylate cyclase pathway and phosphatidylinositol turnover, rapid post-translational effects on the activity of different enzymes as well as long-term effects at the transcriptional level. A gene called GGS1 (for General Glucose Sensor) that is apparently required for the glucose-induced regulatory effects and several ggs1 alleles (fdp1, byp1 and cif1) has been cloned and characterized. A GGS1 homologue is present in Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum. Yeast ggs1 mutants are unable to grow on glucose or related readily fermentable sugars, apparently owing to unrestricted influx of sugar into glycolysis, resulting in its rapid deregulation. Levels of intracellular free glucose and metabolites measured over a period of a few minutes after addition of glucose to cells of a ggs1 delta strain are consistent with our previous suggestion of a functional interaction between a sugar transporter, a sugar kinase and the GGS1 gene product. Such a glucose-sensing system might both restrict the influx of glucose and activate several signal transduction pathways, leading to the wide range of glucose-induced regulatory phenomena. Deregulation of these pathways in ggs1 mutants might explain phenotypic defects observed in the absence of glucose, e.g. the inability of ggs1 diploids to sporulate.

Analysis of transcription and translation of glycolytic enzymes in glucose-limited continuous cultures of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

mRNA steady-state levels and activities of enzymes of intermediary carbon metabolism (hexokinase, phosphoglucoisomerase, phosphofructokinase, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, phosphoglucomutase) and glucose-regulated enzymes (pyruvate decarboxylase, pyruvate dehydrogenase, invertase, alcohol dehydrogenase) were determined in glucose-limited continuous cultures of an industrial strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae at different dilution rates (D) ranging from 0.05 to 0.315 h-1. The activity of most enzymes measured remained constant over this range except for alcohol dehydrogenase I/II which decreased proportionally with increasing dilution rate. A decrease in phosphoglucomutase activity occurred with increasing dilution rate but reached a minimum at D 0.2 h-1 and from thereon remained constant. A decrease in pyruvate decarboxylase activity and a slight decrease in phosphoglucoisomerase activity was observed. At D 0.29/0.315 h-1, at the onset of the Crabtree effect, most glycolytic enzymes remained constant except for pyruvate decarboxylase and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase which increased at D 0.315 h-1 and alcohol dehydrogenase I/II which decreased. The ADHI/II and PDC1 mRNA levels obtained at the different dilution rates were in accordance with the activity measurements. The mRNA level of HXK1 decreased with increasing dilution rates, whereas the transcription of HXK2 increased. Pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDA1) and PGI1 mRNA fluctuated but no significant change could be detected. These results indicate that there is no transcriptional or translational regulation of glycolytic flux between D 0.05 h-1 and 0.315 h-1 except at the branch point between oxidative and fermentative metabolism (pyruvate decarboxylase/pyruvate dehydrogenase) at D 0.315 h-1. Surprisingly regulation of the Crabtree effect does not seem to involve transcriptional regulation of PDA1.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Analysis of glucose repression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae by pulsing glucose to a galactose-limited continuous culture.

In this study, glucose repression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae was analysed under defined physiological conditions, at both the molecular and physiological levels, by pulsing glucose to a galactose-limited continuous culture. During this pulse of glucose, the galactose feed was kept constant. Directly after the glucose pulse, carbon dioxide production increased while oxygen consumption remained constant, demonstrating that the surplus of glucose had been consumed by means of fermentation. The direct accumulation of galactose in the medium after the glucose pulse indicated that the consumption of galactose had been stopped instantaneously. Galactose uptake experiments revealed that the galactose transporter was still present but apparently was incapable of galactose uptake, which could be due to inhibition of the galactose transporter by glucose. The total concentration of cAMP increased from 5 nmol g-1 at t = 0 to 25 nmol g-1 at t = 1.5 min. After 2 min the concentration of cAMP gradually decreased again to the normal level. Within 2 min after the addition of glucose, the transcription of the GAL genes and SUC2 was inhibited. In addition, the transcription of the HXK1 gene, encoding hexokinase isoenzyme 1, was also inhibited, which demonstrates that the HXK1 gene is regulated at the transcriptional level comparable with invertase.