Regulation of Cdc42 polarization by the Rsr1 GTPase and Rga1, a Cdc42 GTPase-activating protein, in budding yeast.

Cdc42 plays a central role in establishing polarity in yeast and animals, yet how polarization of Cdc42 is achieved in response to spatial cues is poorly understood. Using live-cell imaging, we found distinct dynamics of Cdc42 polarization in haploid budding yeast in correlation with two temporal steps of the G1 phase. The position at which the Cdc42-GTP cluster develops changes rapidly around the division site during the first step but becomes stabilized in the second step, suggesting that an axis of polarized growth is determined in mid G1. Cdc42 polarization in the first step and its proper positioning depend on Rsr1 and its GTPase-activating protein (GAP) Bud2. Interestingly, Rga1, a Cdc42 GAP, exhibits transient localization to a site near the bud neck and to the division site during cytokinesis and G1, and this temporal change of Rga1 distribution is necessary for determination of a proper growth site. Mathematical modeling suggests that a proper axis of Cdc42 polarization in haploid cells might be established through a biphasic mechanism involving sequential positive feedback and transient negative feedback.

Mapping the functional yeast ABC transporter interactome.

ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters are a ubiquitous class of integral membrane proteins of immense clinical interest because of their strong association with human disease and pharmacology. To improve our understanding of these proteins, we used membrane yeast two-hybrid technology to map the protein interactome of all of the nonmitochondrial ABC transporters in the model organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae and combined this data with previously reported yeast ABC transporter interactions in the BioGRID database to generate a comprehensive, integrated 'interactome'. We show that ABC transporters physically associate with proteins involved in an unexpectedly diverse range of functions. We specifically examine the importance of the physical interactions of ABC transporters in both the regulation of one another and in the modulation of proteins involved in zinc homeostasis. The interaction network presented here will be a powerful resource for increasing our fundamental understanding of the cellular role and regulation of ABC transporters.

Genome-Wide Studies of Rho5-Interacting Proteins That Are Involved in Oxidant-Induced Cell Death in Budding Yeast.

Rho GTPases play critical roles in cell proliferation and cell death in many species. As in animal cells, cells of the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae undergo regulated cell death under various physiological conditions and upon exposure to external stress. The Rho5 GTPase is necessary for oxidant-induced cell death, and cells expressing a constitutively active GTP-locked Rho5 are hypersensitive to oxidants. Yet how Rho5 regulates yeast cell death has been poorly understood. To identify genes that are involved in the Rho5-mediated cell death program, we performed two complementary genome-wide screens: one screen for oxidant-resistant deletion mutants and another screen for Rho5-associated proteins. Functional enrichment and interaction network analysis revealed enrichment for genes in pathways related to metabolism, transport, and plasma membrane organization. In particular, we find that ATG21, which is known to be involved in the CVT (Cytoplasm-to-Vacuole Targeting) pathway and mitophagy, is necessary for cell death induced by oxidants. Cells lacking Atg21 exhibit little cell death upon exposure to oxidants even when the GTP-locked Rho5 is expressed. Moreover, Atg21 interacts with Rho5 preferentially in its GTP-bound state, suggesting that Atg21 is a downstream target of Rho5 in oxidant-induced cell death. Given the high degree of conservation of Rho GTPases and autophagy from yeast to human, this study may provide insight into regulated cell death in eukaryotes in general.

Mechanisms Connecting the Conserved Protein Kinases Ssp1, Kin1, and Pom1 in Fission Yeast Cell Polarity and Division.

Connections between the protein kinases that function within complex cell polarity networks are poorly understood. Rod-shaped fission yeast cells grow in a highly polarized manner, and genetic screens have identified many protein kinases, including the CaMKK-like Ssp1 and the MARK/PAR-1 family kinase Kin1, that are required for polarized growth and cell shape, but their functional mechanisms and connections have been unknown [1-5]. We found that Ssp1 promotes cell polarity by phosphorylating the activation loop of Kin1. Kin1 regulates cell polarity and cytokinesis through unknown mechanisms [4-7]. We performed a large-scale phosphoproteomic screen and found that Kin1 phosphorylates itself and Pal1 to promote growth at cell tips, and these proteins are interdependent for localization to growing cell tips. Additional Kin1 substrates for cell polarity and cytokinesis (Tea4, Mod5, Cdc15, and Cyk3) were also phosphorylated by a second kinase, the DYRK family member Pom1 [8]. Kin1 and Pom1 were enriched at opposite ends of growing cells, and they phosphorylated largely non-overlapping sites on shared substrates. Combined inhibition of both Kin1and Pom1 led to synthetic defects in their shared substrates Cdc15 and Cyk3, confirming a non-redundant functional connection through shared substrates. These findings uncover a new Ssp1-Kin1 signaling pathway, and define its functional and mechanistic connection with Pom1 signaling for cell polarity and cytokinesis. These kinases are conserved in many eukaryotes including humans, suggesting that similar connections and mechanisms might operate in a broad range of cells.

Probing Cdc42 Polarization Dynamics in Budding Yeast Using a Biosensor.

Cdc42 is a small guanosine triphosphatase (GTPase) that plays a central role in polarity development in diverse cell types. Since the activity of Cdc42 is dynamically controlled in time and space, it is required to develop a biosensor to monitor its activation in vivo. In this chapter, we describe the construction and usage of a simple and robust biosensor for monitoring active Cdc42 in budding yeast. This affinity-based biosensor uses a red fluorescent protein fused to a Cdc42- and Rac-interactive binding motif from one of the Cdc42 effector proteins. Because it binds specifically to the GTP-bound Cdc42, this biosensor can be used to monitor Cdc42 activation in vivo. This or similar biosensors can be widely used for studying GTPase signaling in other cell types because of the conserved CRIB motif present among GTPase targets.

Phosphatases Generate Signal Specificity Downstream of Ssp1 Kinase in Fission Yeast.

AMPK-related protein kinases (ARKs) coordinate cell growth, proliferation, and migration with environmental status. It is unclear how specific ARKs are activated at specific times. In the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, the CaMKK-like protein kinase Ssp1 promotes cell cycle progression by activating the ARK Cdr2 according to cell growth signals. Here, we demonstrate that Ssp1 activates a second ARK, Ssp2/AMPKα, for cell proliferation in low environmental glucose. Ssp1 activates these two related targets by the same biochemical mechanism: direct phosphorylation of a conserved residue in the activation loop (Cdr2-T166 and Ssp2-T189). Despite a shared upstream kinase and similar phosphorylation sites, Cdr2 and Ssp2 have distinct regulatory input cues and distinct functional outputs. We investigated this specificity and found that distinct protein phosphatases counteract Ssp1 activity toward its different substrates. We identified the PP6 family phosphatase Ppe1 as the primary phosphatase for Ssp2-T189 dephosphorylation. The phosphatase inhibitor Sds23 acts upstream of PP6 to regulate Ssp2-T189 phosphorylation in a manner that depends on energy but not on the intact AMPK heterotrimer. In contrast, Cdr2-T166 phosphorylation is regulated by protein phosphatase 2A but not by the Sds23-PP6 pathway. Thus, our study provides a phosphatase-driven mechanism to induce specific physiological responses downstream of a master protein kinase.

Fine-tuning the orientation of the polarity axis by Rga1, a Cdc42 GTPase-activating protein.

In yeast and animal cells, signaling pathways involving small guanosine triphosphatases (GTPases) regulate cell polarization. In budding yeast, selection of a bud site directs polarity establishment and subsequently determines the plane of cell division. Rga1, a Cdc42 GTPase-activating protein, prevents budding within the division site by inhibiting Cdc42 repolarization. A protein complex including Nba1 and Nis1 is involved in preventing rebudding at old division sites, yet how these proteins and Rga1 might function in negative polarity signaling has been elusive. Here we show that Rga1 transiently localizes to the immediately preceding and older division sites by interacting with Nba1 and Nis1. The LIM domains of Rga1 are necessary for its interaction with Nba1, and loss of this interaction results in premature delocalization of Rga1 from the immediately preceding division site and, consequently, abnormal bud-site selection in daughter cells. However, such defects are minor in mother cells of these mutants, likely because the G1 phase is shorter and a new bud site is established prior to delocalization of Rga1. Indeed, our biphasic mathematical model of Cdc42 polarization predicts that premature delocalization of Rga1 leads to more frequent Cdc42 repolarization within the division site when the first temporal step in G1 is assumed to last longer. Spatial distribution of a Cdc42 GAP in coordination with G1 progression may thus be critical for fine-tuning the orientation of the polarity axis in yeast.

A Comprehensive Membrane Interactome Mapping of Sho1p Reveals Fps1p as a Novel Key Player in the Regulation of the HOG Pathway in S. cerevisiae.

Sho1p, an integral membrane protein, plays a vital role in the high-osmolarity glycerol (HOG) mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Activated under conditions of high osmotic stress, it interacts with other HOG pathway proteins to mediate cell signaling events, ensuring that yeast cells can adapt and remain viable. In an attempt to further understand how the function of Sho1p is regulated through its protein-protein interactions (PPIs), we identified 49 unique Sho1p PPIs through the use of membrane yeast two-hybrid (MYTH), an assay specifically suited to identify PPIs of full-length integral membrane proteins in their native membrane environment. Secondary validation by literature search, or two complementary PPI assays, confirmed 80% of these interactions, resulting in a high-quality Sho1p interactome. This set of putative PPIs included both previously characterized interactors, along with a large subset of interactors that have not been previously identified as binding to Sho1p. The SH3 domain of Sho1p was found to be important for binding to many of these interactors. One particular novel interactor of interest is the glycerol transporter Fps1p, which was shown to require the SH3 domain of Sho1p for binding via its N-terminal soluble regulatory domain. Furthermore, we found that Fps1p is involved in the positive regulation of Sho1p function and plays a role in the phosphorylation of the downstream kinase Hog1p. This study represents the largest membrane interactome analysis of Sho1p to date and complements past studies on the HOG pathway by increasing our understanding of Sho1p regulation.

Bud3 activates Cdc42 to establish a proper growth site in budding yeast.

Cell polarization occurs along a single axis that is generally determined by a spatial cue, yet the underlying mechanism is poorly understood. Using biochemical assays and live-cell imaging, we show that cell polarization to a proper growth site requires activation of Cdc42 by Bud3 in haploid budding yeast. Bud3 catalyzes the release of guanosine diphosphate (GDP) from Cdc42 and elevates intracellular Cdc42-guanosine triphosphate (GTP) levels in cells with inactive Cdc24, which has as of yet been the sole GDP-GTP exchange factor for Cdc42. Cdc42 is activated in two temporal steps in the G1 phase: the first depends on Bud3, whereas subsequent activation depends on Cdc24. Mutational analyses suggest that biphasic activation of Cdc42 in G1 is necessary for assembly of a proper bud site. Biphasic activation of Cdc42 or Rac GTPases may be a general mechanism for spatial cue-directed cell polarization in eukaryotes.

Polarization of diploid daughter cells directed by spatial cues and GTP hydrolysis of Cdc42 budding yeast.

Cell polarization occurs along a single axis that is generally determined by a spatial cue. Cells of the budding yeast exhibit a characteristic pattern of budding, which depends on cell-type-specific cortical markers, reflecting a genetic programming for the site of cell polarization. The Cdc42 GTPase plays a key role in cell polarization in various cell types. Although previous studies in budding yeast suggested positive feedback loops whereby Cdc42 becomes polarized, these mechanisms do not include spatial cues, neglecting the normal patterns of budding. Here we combine live-cell imaging and mathematical modeling to understand how diploid daughter cells establish polarity preferentially at the pole distal to the previous division site. Live-cell imaging shows that daughter cells of diploids exhibit dynamic polarization of Cdc42-GTP, which localizes to the bud tip until the M phase, to the division site at cytokinesis, and then to the distal pole in the next G1 phase. The strong bias toward distal budding of daughter cells requires the distal-pole tag Bud8 and Rga1, a GTPase activating protein for Cdc42, which inhibits budding at the cytokinesis site. Unexpectedly, we also find that over 50% of daughter cells lacking Rga1 exhibit persistent Cdc42-GTP polarization at the bud tip and the distal pole, revealing an additional role of Rga1 in spatiotemporal regulation of Cdc42 and thus in the pattern of polarized growth. Mathematical modeling indeed reveals robust Cdc42-GTP clustering at the distal pole in diploid daughter cells despite random perturbation of the landmark cues. Moreover, modeling predicts different dynamics of Cdc42-GTP polarization when the landmark level and the initial level of Cdc42-GTP at the division site are perturbed by noise added in the model.

The Rho1 GTPase acts together with a vacuolar glutathione S-conjugate transporter to protect yeast cells from oxidative stress.

Maintenance of redox homeostasis is critical for the survival of all aerobic organisms. In the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, as in other eukaryotes, reactive oxygen species (ROS) are generated during metabolism and upon exposure to environmental stresses. The abnormal production of ROS triggers defense mechanisms to avoid the deleterious consequence of ROS accumulation. Here, we show that the Rho1 GTPase is necessary to confer resistance to oxidants in budding yeast. Temperature-sensitive rho1 mutants (rho1(ts)) are hypersensitive to oxidants and exhibit high accumulation of ROS even at a semipermissive temperature. Rho1 associates with Ycf1, a vacuolar glutathione S-conjugate transporter, which is important for heavy metal detoxification in yeast. Rho1 and Ycf1 exhibit a two-hybrid interaction with each other and form a bimolecular fluorescent complex on the vacuolar membrane. A fluorescent-based complementation assay suggests that the GTP-bound Rho1 associates with Ycf1 and that their interaction is enhanced upon exposure to hydrogen peroxide. The rho1(ts) mutants also exhibit hypersensitivity to cadmium, while cells carrying a deletion of YCF1 or mutations in a component of the Pkc1-MAP kinase pathway exhibit little or minor sensitivity to oxidants. We thus propose that Rho1 protects yeast cells from oxidative stress by regulating multiple downstream targets including Ycf1. Since both Rho1 and Ycf1 belong to highly conserved families of proteins, similar mechanisms may exist in other eukaryotes.