Altering the DNA-binding specificity of the yeast Matalpha 2 homeodomain protein.

Homeodomain proteins are a highly conserved class of DNA-binding proteins that are found in virtually every eukaryotic organism. The conserved mechanism that these proteins use to bind DNA suggests that there may be at least a partial DNA recognition code for this class of proteins. To test this idea, we have investigated the sequence-specific requirements for DNA binding and repression by the yeast alpha2 homeodomain protein in association with its cofactors, Mcm1 and Mata1. We have determined the contribution for each residue in the alpha2 homeodomain that contacts the DNA in the co-crystal structures of the protein. We have also engineered mutants in the alpha2 homeodomain to alter the DNA-binding specificity of the protein. Although we were unable to change the specificity of alpha2 by making substitutions at residues 47, 54, and 55, we were able to alter the DNA-binding specificity by making substitutions at residue 50 in the homeodomain. Since other homeodomain proteins show similar changes in specificity with substitutions at residue 50, this suggests that there is at least a partial DNA recognition code at this position.

The pachytene checkpoint in Saccharomyces cerevisiae requires the Sum1 transcriptional repressor.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae mutants that fail to complete meiotic recombination are blocked by the RAD17/RAD24/MEC1 checkpoint signaling pathway in pachytene when early sporulation genes are expressed. Middle genes are not activated in checkpoint-arrested cells because the Ndt80 transcription factor is inhibited. We find that the pachytene checkpoint requires Sum1, a transcriptional repressor that recognizes a subset of Ndt80-binding sites. Mutants lacking Sum1 or Rad17 partially bypass the block to the nuclear divisions but do not form spores, while mutants lacking both Sum1 and Rad17 completely bypass the block and form morphologically normal spores. The level of Sum1 protein decreases as middle genes are expressed, and this decrease is blocked in checkpoint-arrested cells. These data suggest that Sum1 levels are regulated by the checkpoint and that progression of the meiotic divisions and spore differentiation can be differentially controlled by competition of the Sum1 repressor and Ndt80 activator for occupancy at key middle promoters.

Localization and signaling of G(beta) subunit Ste4p are controlled by a-factor receptor and the a-specific protein Asg7p.

Haploid yeast cells initiate pheromone signaling upon the binding of pheromone to its receptor and activation of the coupled G protein. A regulatory process termed receptor inhibition blocks pheromone signaling when the a-factor receptor is inappropriately expressed in MATa cells. Receptor inhibition blocks signaling by inhibiting the activity of the G protein beta subunit, Ste4p. To investigate how Ste4p activity is inhibited, its subcellular location was examined. In wild-type cells, alpha-factor treatment resulted in localization of Ste4p to the plasma membrane of mating projections. In cells expressing the a-factor receptor, alpha-factor treatment resulted in localization of Ste4p away from the plasma membrane to an internal compartment. An altered version of Ste4p that is largely insensitive to receptor inhibition retained its association with the membrane in cells expressing the a-factor receptor. The inhibitory function of the a-factor receptor required ASG7, an a-specific gene of previously unknown function. ASG7 RNA was induced by pheromone, consistent with increased inhibition as the pheromone response progresses. The a-factor receptor inhibited signaling in its liganded state, demonstrating that the receptor can block the signal that it initiates. ASG7 was required for the altered localization of Ste4p that occurs during receptor inhibition, and the subcellular location of Asg7p was consistent with its having a direct effect on Ste4p localization. These results demonstrate that Asg7p mediates a regulatory process that blocks signaling from a G protein beta subunit and causes its relocalization within the cell.

Transcriptional regulation of meiosis in yeast.

The genes required for meiosis and sporulation in yeast are expressed at specific points in a highly regulated temporal pathway. Recent experiments using DNA microarrays to examine gene expression during meiosis and the identification of many regulatory factors have provided important advances in our understanding of how genes are regulated at the different stages of meiosis.

Scanning mutagenesis of Mcm1: residues required for DNA binding, DNA bending, and transcriptional activation by a MADS-box protein.

MCM1 is an essential gene in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and is a member of the MADS-box family of transcriptional regulatory factors. To understand the nature of the protein-DNA interactions of this class of proteins, we have made a series of alanine substitutions in the DNA-binding domain of Mcm1 and examined the effects of these mutations in vivo and in vitro. Our results indicate which residues of Mcm1 are important for viability, transcriptional activation, and DNA binding and bending. Substitution of residues in Mcm1 which are highly conserved among the MADS-box proteins are lethal to the cell and abolish DNA binding in vitro. These positions have almost identical interactions with DNA in both the serum response factor-DNA and alpha2-Mcm1-DNA crystal structures, suggesting that these residues make up a conserved core of protein-DNA interactions responsible for docking MADS-box proteins to DNA. Substitution of residues which are not as well conserved among members of the MADS-box family play important roles in contributing to the specificity of DNA binding. These results suggest a general model of how MADS-box proteins recognize and bind DNA. We also provide evidence that the N-terminal extension of Mcm1 may have considerable conformational freedom, possibly to allow binding to different DNA sites. Finally, we have identified two mutants at positions which are critical for Mcm1-mediated DNA bending that have a slow-growth phenotype. This finding is consistent with our earlier results, indicating that DNA bending may have a role in Mcm1 function in the cell.

Sum1 and Hst1 repress middle sporulation-specific gene expression during mitosis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Meiotic development in yeast is characterized by the sequential induction of temporally distinct classes of genes. Genes that are induced at the middle stages of the pathway share a promoter element, termed the middle sporulation element (MSE), which interacts with the Ndt80 transcriptional activator. We have found that a subclass of MSEs are strong repressor sites during mitosis. SUM1 and HST1, genes previously associated with transcriptional silencing, are required for MSE-mediated repression. Sum1 binds specifically in vitro to MSEs that function as strong repressor sites in vivo. Repression by Sum1 is gene specific and does not extend to neighboring genes. These results suggest that mechanisms used to silence large regions of chromatin may also be used to regulate the expression of specific genes during development. NDT80 is regulated during mitosis by both the Sum1 and Ume6 repressors. These results suggest that progression through sporulation may be controlled by the regulated competition between the Sum1 repressor and Ndt80 activator at key MSEs.

Identification of target sites of the alpha2-Mcm1 repressor complex in the yeast genome.

The alpha2 and Mcm1 proteins bind DNA as a heterotetramer to repress transcription of cell-type-specific genes in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Based on the DNA sequence requirements for binding by the alpha2-Mcm1 complex, we have searched the yeast genome for all potential alpha2-Mcm1 binding sites. Genes adjacent to the sites were examined for expression in the different cell mating types. These sites were further analyzed by cloning the sequences into a heterologous promoter and assaying for alpha2-Mcm1-dependent repression in vivo and DNA-binding affinity in vitro. Fifty-nine potential binding sites were identified in the search. Thirty-seven sites are located within or downstream of coding region of the gene. None of the sites assayed from this group are functional repressor sites in vivo or bound by the alpha2-Mcm1 complex in vitro. Among the remaining 22 sites, six are in the promoters of known alpha-specific genes and two other sites have an alpha2-Mcm1-dependent role in determining the direction of mating type switching. Among the remaining sequences, we have identified a functional site located in the promoter region of a previously uncharacterized gene, SCYJL170C. This site functions to repress transcription of a heterologous promoter and the alpha2-Mcm1 complex binds to the site in vitro. SCYJL170C is repressed by alpha2-Mcm1 in vivo and therefore using this method we have identified a new a-specific gene, which we call ASG7.

The yeast a1 and alpha2 homeodomain proteins do not contribute equally to heterodimeric DNA binding.

In diploid cells of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the alpha2 and a1 homeodomain proteins bind cooperatively to sites in the promoters of haploid cell-type-specific genes (hsg) to repress their expression. Although both proteins bind to the DNA, in the alpha2 homeodomain substitutions of residues that are involved in contacting the DNA have little or no effect on repression in vivo or cooperative DNA binding with a1 protein in vitro. This result brings up the question of the contribution of each protein in the heterodimer complex to the DNA-binding affinity and specificity. To determine the requirements for the a1-alpha2 homeodomain DNA recognition, we systematically introduced single base-pair substitutions in an a1-alpha2 DNA-binding site and examined their effects on repression in vivo and DNA binding in vitro. Our results show that nearly all substitutions that significantly decrease repression and DNA-binding affinity are at positions which are specifically contacted by either the alpha2 or a1 protein. Interestingly, an alpha2 mutant lacking side chains that make base-specific contacts in the major groove is able to discriminate between the wild-type and mutant DNA sites with the same sequence specificity as the wild-type protein. These results suggest that the specificity of alpha2 DNA binding in complex with a1 does not rely solely on the residues that make base-specific contacts. We have also examined the contribution of the a1 homeodomain to the binding affinity and specificity of the complex. In contrast to the lack of a defective phenotype produced by mutations in the alpha2 homeodomain, many of the alanine substitutions of residues in the a1 homeodomain have large effects on a1-alpha2-mediated repression and DNA binding. This result shows that the two proteins do not make equal contributions to the DNA-binding affinity of the complex.

Crystal structure of the MATa1/MATalpha2 homeodomain heterodimer in complex with DNA containing an A-tract.

The crystal structure of the heterodimer formed by the DNA binding domains of the yeast mating type transcription factors, MATa1 and MATalpha2, bound to a 21 bp DNA fragment has been determined at 2.5 A resolution. The DNA fragment in the present study differs at four central base pairs from the DNA sequence used in the previously studied ternary complex. These base pair changes give rise to a (dA5).(dT5) tract without changing the overall base composition of the DNA. The resulting A-tract occurs near the center of the overall 60 degrees bend in the DNA. Comparison of the two structures shows that the structural details of the DNA bend are maintained despite the DNA sequence changes. Analysis of the A5-tract DNA subfragment shows that it contains a bend toward the minor groove centered at one end of the A-tract. The observed bend is larger than that observed in the crystal structures of A-tracts embedded in uncomplexed DNA, which are straight and have been presumed to be quite rigid. Variation of the central DNA base sequence reverses the two AT base pairs contacted in the minor groove by Arg7 of the alpha2 N-terminal arm without significantly altering the DNA binding affinity of the a1/alpha2 heterodimer. The Arg7 side chain accommodates the sequence change by forming alternate H bond interactions, in agreement with the proposal that minor groove base pair recognition is insensitive to base pair reversal. Furthermore, the minor groove spine of hydration, which stabilizes the narrowed minor groove caused by DNA bending, is conserved in both structures. We also find that many of the water-mediated hydrogen bonds between the a1 and alpha2 homeodomains and the DNA are highly conserved, indicating an important role for water in stabilization of the a1/alpha2-DNA complex.

Transcriptional regulation of the SMK1 mitogen-activated protein kinase gene during meiotic development in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Meiotic development (sporulation) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is characterized by an ordered pattern of gene expression, with sporulation-specific genes classified as early, middle, mid-late, or late depending on when they are expressed. SMK1 encodes a mitogen-activated protein kinase required for spore morphogenesis that is expressed as a middle sporulation-specific gene. Here, we identify the cis-acting DNA elements that regulate SMK1 transcription and characterize the phenotypes of mutants with altered expression patterns. The SMK1 promoter contains an upstream activating sequence (UASS) that specifically interacts with the transcriptional activator Abf1p. The Abf1p-binding sites from the early HOP1 and the middle SMK1 promoters are functionally interchangeable, demonstrating that these elements do not play a direct role in their differential transcriptional timing. Timing of SMK1 expression is determined by another cis-acting DNA sequence termed MSE (for middle sporulation element). The MSE is required not only for activation of SMK1 transcription during middle sporulation but also for its repression during vegetative growth and early meiosis. In addition, the SMK1 MSE can repress vegetative expression in the context of the HOP1 promoter and convert HOP1 from an early to a middle gene. SMK1 function is not contingent on its tight transcriptional regulation as a middle sporulation-specific gene. However, promoter mutants with different quantitative defects in SMK1 transcript levels during middle sporulation show distinct sporulation phenotypes.

Alpha2p controls donor preference during mating type interconversion in yeast by inactivating a recombinational enhancer of chromosome III.

Homothallic strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae can change mating type as often as every generation by replacing the allele at the MAT locus with a copy of mating type information present at one of two storage loci, HML and HMR, located on either end of chromosome III. Selection of the appropriate donor locus is dictated by a mating type-specific repressor protein, alpha2p: Cells containing alpha2p select HMR, whereas those lacking alpha2p select HML. As a repressor protein, alpha2p binds to DNA cooperatively with the transcriptional activator Mcm1p. Here we show that two alpha2p/Mcm1p-binding sites, DPS1 and DPS2, control donor selection. DPS1 and DPS2 are located approximately 30 kb from the left arm of chromosome III, well removed from HML, HMR, and MAT. Precise deletion of only DPS1 and DPS2 results in random selection of donor loci and in a cells without affecting selection in alpha cells. Reciprocally, deletion of only the alpha2p binding segments in each of these two sites results in selection of the wrong donor loci in alpha cells without affecting preference in a cells. These results suggest that Mcm1p, bound to these two sites in the absence of alpha2p, activates HML as donor. Binding of alpha2p blocks the ability of Mcm1p bound to DPS1 and DPS2 to activate HML, resulting in default selection of HMR as donor. DPS1 and DPS2 also regulate expression of several noncoding RNAs, although deletion of at least one of these RNA loci does not affect donor preference. This suggests that transcriptional activation, rather than transcription of a specific product, is the initiating event in activating the left arm of chromosome III for donor selection.

Analysis of a meiosis-specific URS1 site: sequence requirements and involvement of replication protein A.

URS1 is a transcriptional repressor site found in the promoters of a wide variety of yeast genes that are induced under stress conditions. In the context of meiotic promoters, URS1 sites act as repressor sequences during mitosis and function as activator sites during meiosis. We have investigated the sequence requirements of the URS1 site of the meiosis-specific HOP1 gene (URS1H) and have found differences compared with a URS1 site from a nonmeiotic gene. We have also observed that the sequence specificity for meiotic activation at this site differs from that for mitotic repression. Base pairs flanking the conserved core sequence enhance meiotic induction but are not required for mitotic repression of HOP1. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays of mitotic and meiotic cell extracts show a complex pattern of DNA-protein complexes, suggesting that several different protein factors bind specifically to the site. We have determined that one of the complexes of URS1H is formed by replication protein A (RPA). Although RPA binds to the double-stranded URS1H site in vitro, it has much higher affinity for single-stranded than for double-stranded URS1H, and one-hybrid assays suggest that RPA does not bind to this site at detectable levels in vivo. In addition, conditional-lethal mutations in RPA were found to have no effect on URS1H-mediated repression. These results suggest that although RPA binds to URS1H in vitro, it does not appear to have a functional role in transcriptional repression through this site in vivo.

DNA-binding specificity of Mcm1: operator mutations that alter DNA-bending and transcriptional activities by a MADS box protein.

The yeast Mcm1 protein is a member of the MADS box family of transcriptional regulatory factors, a class of DNA-binding proteins found in such diverse organisms as yeast, plants, flies, and humans. To explore the protein-DNA interactions of Mcm1 in vivo and in vitro, we have introduced an extensive series of base pair substitutions into an Mcm1 operator site and examined their effects on Mcm1-mediated transcriptional regulation and DNA-binding affinity. Our results show that Mcm1 uses a mechanism to contact the DNA that has some significant differences from the one used by the human serum response factor (SRF), a closely related MADS box protein in which the three-dimensional structure has been determined. One major difference is that 5-bromouracil-mediated photo-cross-linking experiments indicate that Mcm1 is in close proximity to functional groups in the major groove at the center of the recognition site whereas the SRF protein did not exhibit this characteristic. A more significant difference is that mutations at a position outside of the conserved CC(A/T)6GG site significantly reduce Mcm1-dependent DNA bending, while these substitutions have no effect on DNA bending by SRF. This result shows that the DNA bending by Mcm1 is sequence dependent and that the base-specific requirements for bending differ between Mcm1 and SRF. Interestingly, although these substitutions have a large effect on DNA bending and transcriptional activation by Mcm1, they have a relatively small effect on the DNA-binding affinity of the protein. This result suggests that the degree of DNA bending is important for transcriptional activation by Mcm1.

The yeast homeodomain protein MATalpha2 shows extended DNA binding specificity in complex with Mcm1.

The MATalpha2 (alpha2) repressor interacts with the Mcm1 protein to turn off a-cell type-specific genes in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We compared five natural alpha2-Mcm1 sites with an alpha2-Mcm1 symmetric consensus site (AMSC) for their relative strength of repression and found that the AMSC functions slightly better than any of the natural sites. To further investigate the DNA binding specificity of alpha2 in complex with Mcm1, symmetric substitutions at each position in the alpha2 half-sites of AMSC were constructed and assayed for their effect on repression in vivo and DNA binding affinity in vitro. As expected, substitutions at positions in which there are base-specific contacts decrease the level of repression. Interestingly, substitutions at other positions, in which there are no apparent base-specific contacts made by the protein in the alpha2-DNA co-crystal structure, also significantly decrease repression. As an alternative method to examining the DNA binding specificity of alpha2, we performed in vitro alpha2 binding site selection experiments in the presence and absence of Mcm1. In the presence of Mcm1, the consensus sequences obtained were extended and more closely related to the natural alpha2 sites than the consensus sequence obtained in the absence of Mcm1. These results demonstrate that in the presence of Mcm1 the sequence specificity of alpha2 is extended to these positions.

Homeodomain-DNA interactions of the Pho2 protein are promoter-dependent.

The homeodomain (HD) is a conserved sequence-specific DNA-binding motif found in many eukaryotic transcriptional regulatory proteins. Despite the wealth of in vitro data on the mechanism HD proteins use to bind DNA, comparatively little is known about the roles of individual residues in these domains in vivo . The Saccharomyces cerevisiae Pho2 protein contains a HD that shares significant sequence identity with the Drosophila Engrailed protein. We have used the co-crystal structure of Engrailed as a model to predict how Pho2 might contact DNA and have examined how individual residues of the Pho2 HD contribute to transcriptional activation in vivo and to DNA binding in vitro. Our results demonstrate that Pho2 and Engrailed share many similar DNA-binding characteristics. However, our results also show that some highly conserved residues, which contact the DNA in many HD structures, make relatively small contributions to the DNA-binding affinity and in vivo activity of the Pho2 protein. We also show that the N-terminal arm of the Pho2 HD is a critical component in determining the DNA-binding specificity of the protein and that the requirements for residues in the N-terminal arm are promoter-dependent for Pho2 transcriptional activation and DNA binding.

Protein interactions of homeodomain proteins.

Homeodomain proteins are conserved DNA-binding factors that are involved in the transcriptional regulation of key developmental processes. Many homeodomain proteins require additional cofactors to bind with high affinity and specificity to their DNA sites. The recent structural determinations and biochemical analysis of several multimeric complexes have provided a better understanding of how protein interactions influence the DNA-binding activity of homeodomain proteins.

Participation of the yeast activator Abf1 in meiosis-specific expression of the HOP1 gene.

The meiosis-specific gene HOP1, which encodes a component of the synaptonemal complex, is controlled through two regulatory elements, UASH and URS1H. Sites similar to URS1H have been identified in the promoter region of virtually every early meiosis-specific gene, as well as in many promoters of nonmeiotic genes, and it has been shown that the proteins that bind to this site function to regulate meiotic and nonmeiotic transcription. Sites similar to the UASH site have been found in a number of meiotic and nonmeiotic genes as well. Since it has been shown that UASH functions as an activator site in vegetative haploid cells, it seemed likely that the factors binding to this site regulate both meiotic and nonmeiotic transcription. We purified the factor binding to the UASH element of the HOP1 promoter. Sequence analysis identified the protein as Abf1 (autonomously replicating sequence-binding factor 1), a multifunctional protein involved in DNA replication, silencing, and transcriptional regulation. We show by mutational analysis of the UASH site, that positions outside of the proposed UASH consensus sequence (TNTGN[A/T]GT) are required for DNA binding in vitro and transcriptional activation in vivo. A new UASH consensus sequence derived from this mutational analysis closely matches a consensus Abf1 binding site. We also show that an Abf1 site from a nonmeiotic gene can replace the function of the UASH site in the HOP1 promoter. Taken together, these results show that Abf1 functions to regulate meiotic gene expression.

The yeast alpha2 and Mcm1 proteins interact through a region similar to a motif found in homeodomain proteins of higher eukaryotes.

Homeodomain proteins are transcriptional regulatory factors that, in general, bind DNA with relatively low sequence specificity and affinity. One mechanism homeodomain proteins use to increase their biological specificity is through interactions with other DNA-binding proteins. We have examined how the yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) homeodomain protein alpha2 specifically interacts with Mcm1, a MADS box protein, to bind DNA specifically and repress transcription. A patch of predominantly hydrophobic residues within a region preceding the homeodomain of alpha2 has been identified that specifies direct interaction with Mcm1 in the absence of DNA. This hydrophobic patch is required for cooperative DNA binding with Mcm1 in vitro and for transcriptional repression in vivo. We have also found that a conserved motif, termed YPWM, frequently found in homeodomain proteins of insects and mammals, partially functions in place of the patch in alpha2 to interact with Mcm1. These findings suggest that homeodomain proteins from diverse organisms may use analogous interaction motifs to associate with other proteins to achieve high levels of DNA binding affinity and specificity.

Altered DNA recognition and bending by insertions in the alpha 2 tail of the yeast a1/alpha 2 homeodomain heterodimer.

The yeast MAT alpha 2 and MATa1 homeodomain proteins bind cooperatively as a heterodimer to sites upstream of haploid-specific genes, repressing their transcription. In the crystal structure of alpha 2 and a1 bound to DNA, each homeodomain makes independent base-specific contacts with the DNA and the two proteins contact each other through an extended tail region of alpha 2 that tethers the two homeodomains to one another. Because this extended region may be flexible, the ability of the heterodimer to discriminate among DNA sites with altered spacing between alpha 2 and a1 binding sites was examined. Spacing between the half sites was critical for specific DNA binding and transcriptional repression by the complex. However, amino acid insertions in the tail region of alpha 2 suppressed the effect of altering an a1/alpha 2 site by increasing the spacing between the half sites. Insertions in the tail also decreased DNA bending by a1/alpha 2. Thus tethering the two homeodomains contributes to DNA bending by a1/alpha 2, but the precise nature of the resulting bend is not essential for repression.

A homeo domain protein lacking specific side chains of helix 3 can still bind DNA and direct transcriptional repression.

A series of mutations in the homeo domain of the yeast alpha 2 protein were constructed to test, both in vivo and in vitro, predictions based on the alpha 2-DNA cocrystal structure described by Wolberger et al. (1991). The effects of the mutations were observed in three different contexts using authentic target DNA sequences: alpha 2 binding alone to specific DNA, alpha 2 binding cooperatively with MCM1 to specific DNA, and alpha 2 binding cooperatively with a1 to specific DNA. As expected, changes in the amino acid residues that contact DNA in the X-ray structure severely compromised the ability of alpha 2 to bind DNA alone and to bind DNA cooperatively with MCM1. In contrast, many of these same mutations, including a triple change that altered all the "recognition" residues of helix 3, had little or no effect on the cooperative binding of alpha 2 and a1 to specific DNA, as determined both in vivo and in vitro. These results show that the ability of a homeo domain protein to correctly select and repress target genes does not necessarily depend on the residues commonly implicated in sequence-specific DNA binding.