Sec35p, a novel peripheral membrane protein, is required for ER to Golgi vesicle docking

SEC35 was identified in a novel screen for temperature-sensitive mutants in the secretory pathway of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae (. Genetics. 142:393-406). At the restrictive temperature, the sec35-1 strain exhibits a transport block between the ER and the Golgi apparatus and accumulates numerous vesicles. SEC35 encodes a novel cytosolic protein of 32 kD, peripherally associated with membranes. The temperature-sensitive phenotype of sec35-1 is efficiently suppressed by YPT1, which encodes the rab-like GTPase required early in the secretory pathway, or by SLY1-20, which encodes a dominant form of the ER to Golgi target -SNARE-associated protein Sly1p. Weaker suppression is evident upon overexpression of genes encoding the vesicle-SNAREs SEC22, BET1, or YKT6. The cold-sensitive lethality that results from deleting SEC35 is suppressed by YPT1 or SLY1-20. These genetic relationships suggest that Sec35p acts upstream of, or in conjunction with, Ypt1p and Sly1p as was previously found for Uso1p. Using a cell-free assay that measures distinct steps in vesicle transport from the ER to the Golgi, we find Sec35p is required for a vesicle docking stage catalyzed by Uso1p. These genetic and biochemical results suggest Sec35p acts with Uso1p to dock ER-derived vesicles to the Golgi complex.     

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae early secretion mutant tip20 is synthetic lethal with mutants in yeast coatomer and the SNARE proteins Sec22p and Ufe1p

Tip20p is an 80 kDa cytoplasmic protein bound to the cytoplasmic surface of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) by interaction with the type II integral membrane protein Sec20p. Both proteins are required for vesicular transport between the ER and Golgi complex. Recently, sec20-1 was found to be defective in retrograde transport. A collection of temperature-sensitive tip20 mutants are shown to be lethal in combination with ufe1-1, a target SNARE of the ER and ret2-1, yeast delta-COP. A subset of tip20 mutants was found to be lethal in combination with sec20-1, sec21-1, sec22-3 and sec27-1. Since all pairwise combinations of a tip20 mutant, sec20-1, and ufe1-1 are lethal, Tip20p and Sec20p might be part of the docking complex for Golgi-derived retrograde transport vesicles. Since carboxy-terminal tip20 truncations are lethal in combination with mutants in three coatomer subunits, Tip20p might be involved in binding or uncoating of COPI coated retrograde transport vesicles.     

The yeast v-SNARE Vti1p mediates two vesicle transport pathways through interactions with the t-SNAREs Sed5p and Pep12p

Membrane traffic in eukaryotic cells requires that specific v-SNAREs on transport vesicles interact with specific t-SNAREs on target membranes. We identified a novel Saccharomyces cerevisiae v-SNARE (Vti1p) encoded by the essential gene, VTI1. Vti1p interacts with the prevacuolar t-SNARE Pep12p to direct Golgi to prevacuolar traffic. vti1-1 mutant cells missorted and secreted the soluble vacuolar hydrolase carboxypeptidase Y (CPY) rapidly and reversibly when vti1-1 cells were shifted to the restrictive temperature. However, overexpression of Pep12p suppressed the CPY secretion defect exhibited by vti1-1 cells at 36 degrees C. Characterization of a second vti1 mutant, vti1-11, revealed that Vti1p also plays a role in membrane traffic at a cis-Golgi stage. vti1-11 mutant cells displayed a growth defect and accumulated the ER and early Golgi forms of both CPY and the secreted protein invertase at the nonpermissive temperature. Overexpression of the yeast cis-Golgi t-SNARE Sed5p suppressed the accumulation of the ER form of CPY but did not lead to CPY transport to the vacuole in vti1-11 cells. Overexpression of Sed5p allowed growth in the absence of Vti1p. In vitro binding and coimmunoprecipitation studies revealed that Vti1p interacts directly with the two t-SNAREs, Sed5p and Pep12p. These data suggest that Vti1p plays a role in cis-Golgi membrane traffic, which is essential for yeast viability, and a nonessential role in the fusion of Golgi-derived vesicles with the prevacuolar compartment. Therefore, a single v-SNARE can interact functionally with two different t-SNAREs in directing membrane traffic in yeast.     

Der3p/Hrd1p is required for endoplasmic reticulum-associated degradation of misfolded lumenal and integral membrane proteins

We have studied components of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) proofreading and degradation system in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Using a der3-1 mutant defective in the degradation of a mutated lumenal protein, carboxypeptidase yscY (CPY*), a gene was cloned which encodes a 64-kDa protein of the ER membrane. Der3p was found to be identical with Hrd1p, a protein identified to be necessary for degradation of HMG-CoA reductase. Der3p contains five putative transmembrane domains and a long hydrophilic C-terminal tail containing a RING-H2 finger domain which is oriented to the ER lumen. Deletion of DER3 leads to an accumulation of CPY* inside the ER due to a complete block of its degradation. In addition, a DER3 null mutant allele suppresses the temperature-dependent growth phenotype of a mutant carrying the sec61-2 allele. This is accompanied by the stabilization of the Sec61-2 mutant protein. In contrast, overproduction of Der3p is lethal in a sec61-2 strain at the permissive temperature of 25 degrees C. A mutant Der3p lacking 114 amino acids of the lumenal tail including the RING-H2 finger domain is unable to mediate degradation of CPY* and Sec61-2p. We propose that Der3p acts prior to retrograde transport of ER membrane and lumenal proteins to the cytoplasm where they are subject to degradation via the ubiquitin-proteasome system. Interestingly, in ubc6-ubc7 double mutants, CPY* accumulates in the ER, indicating the necessity of an intact cytoplasmic proteolysis machinery for retrograde transport of CPY*. Der3p might serve as a component programming the translocon for retrograde transport of ER proteins, or it might be involved in recognition through its lumenal RING-H2 motif of proteins of the ER that are destined for degradation.     

Mcs4, a two-component system response regulator homologue, regulates the Schizosaccharomyces pombe cell cycle control

The Schizosaccharomyces pombe cdc2-3w wee1-50 double mutant displays a temperature-sensitive lethal phenotype termed mitotic catastrophe. Six mitotic catastrophe suppressor (mcs1-6) genes were identified in a genetic screen designed to identify regulators of cdc2. Mutations in mcs1-6 suppress the cdc2-3w wee1-50 temperature-sensitive growth defect. Here, the cloning of mcs4 is described. The mcs4 gene product displays significant sequence homology to members of the two-component system response regulator protein family. Strains carrying the mcs4 and cdc25 mutations display a synthetic osmotic lethal phenotype along with an inability to grow on minimal synthetic medium. These phenotypes are suppressed by a mutation in wee1. In addition, the wis1 gene, encoding a stress-activated mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase, was identified as a dosage suppressor in this screen. These findings link the two-component signal transduction system to stress response and cell cycle control in S. pombe.     

A protein required for nuclear-protein import, Mog1p, directly interacts with GTP-Gsp1p, the Saccharomyces cerevisiae ran homologue

We previously isolated 25 temperature-sensitive gsp1 alleles of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Ran homologue, each of which possesses amino acid changes that differ from each other. We report here isolation of three multicopy suppressors-PDE2, NTF2, and a gene designated MOG1-all of which rescued a growth defect of these gsp1 strains. The gsp1 suppression occurred even in the absence of GSP2, another S. cerevisiae GSP1-like gene. Previously, NTF2 was reported to suppress gsp1 but not PDE2. Mog1p, with a calculated molecular mass of 24 kDa, was found to be encoded by the yeast ORF YJR074W. Both MOG1 and NTF2 suppressed a series of gsp1 alleles with similar efficiency, and both suppressed gsp1 even with a single gene dose. Consistent with the high efficiency of gsp1 suppression, Mog1p directly bound to GTP, but not to GDP-Gsp1p. The disruption of MOG1 made yeast temperature-sensitive for growth. Deltamog1, which was suppressed by overexpression of NTF2, was found to have a defect in both classic and nonclassic nuclear localization signal-dependent nuclear-protein imports, but not in mRNA export. Thus, Mog1p, which was localized in the nucleus, is a Gsp1p-binding protein involved in nuclear-protein import and that functionally interacts with Ntf2p. Furthermore, the finding that PDE2 suppressed both gsp1 and rna1-1 indicates that the Ran GTPase cycle is regulated by the Ras-cAMP pathway.     

A link between secretion and pre-mRNA processing defects in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the identification of a novel splicing gene, RSE1

Secretory proteins in eukaryotic cells are transported to the cell surface via the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the Golgi apparatus by membrane-bounded vesicles. We screened a collection of temperature-sensitive mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae for defects in ER-to-Golgi transport. Two of the genes identified in this screen were PRP2, which encodes a known pre-mRNA splicing factor, and RSE1, a novel gene that we show to be important for pre-mRNA splicing. Both prp2-13 and rse1-1 mutants accumulate the ER forms of invertase and the vacuolar protease CPY at restrictive temperature. The secretion defect in each mutant can be suppressed by increasing the amount of SAR1, which encodes a small GTPase essential for COPII vesicle formation from the ER, or by deleting the intron from the SAR1 gene. These data indicate that a failure to splice SAR1 pre-mRNA is the specific cause of the secretion defects in prp2-13 and rse1-1. Moreover, these data imply that Sar1p is a limiting component of the ER-to-Golgi transport machinery and suggest a way that secretory pathway function might be coordinated with the amount of gene expression in a cell.     

The fission yeast mitotic regulator win1+ encodes an MAP kinase kinase kinase that phosphorylates and activates Wis1 MAP kinase kinase in response to high osmolarity

The Schizosaccharomyces pombe win1-1 mutant has a defect in the G2-M transition of the cell cycle. Although the defect is suppressed by wis1+ and wis4+, which are components of a stress-activated MAP kinase pathway that links stress response and cell cycle control, the molecular identity of Win1 has not been known. We show here that win1+ encodes a polypeptide of 1436 residues with an apparent molecular size of 180 kDa and demonstrate that Win1 is a MAP kinase kinase kinase that phosphorylates and activates Wis1. Despite extensive similarities between Win1 and Wis4, the two MAP kinase kinase kinases have distinct functions. Wis4 is able to compensate for loss of Win1 only under unstressed conditions to maintain basal Wis1 activity, but it fails to suppress the osmosignaling defect conferred by win1 mutations. The win1-1 mutation is a spontaneous duplication of 16 nucleotides, which leads to a frameshift and production of a truncated protein lacking the kinase domain. We discuss the cell cycle phenotype of the win1-1 cdc25-22 wee1-50 mutant and its suppression by wis genes.     

The Rho1 effector Pkc1, but not Bni1, mediates signalling from Tor2 to the actin cytoskeleton

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the phosphatidylinositol kinase homologue Tor2 controls the cell-cycle-dependent organisation of the actin cytoskeleton by activating the small GTPase Rho1 via the exchange factor Rom2 [1,2]. Four Rho1 effectors are known, protein kinase C 1 (Pkc1), the formin-family protein Bni1, the glucan synthase Fks and the signalling protein Skn7 [2,3]. Rho1 has been suggested to signal to the actin cytoskeleton via Bni1 and Pkc1; rho1 mutants have never been shown to have defects in actin organisation, however [2,4]. We have further investigated the role of Rho1 in controlling actin organisation and have analysed which of the Rho1 effectors mediates Tor2 signalling to the actin cytoskeleton. We show that some, but not all, rho1 temperature-sensitive (rho1ts) mutants arrest growth with a disorganised actin cytoskeleton. Both the growth defect and the actin organisation defect of the rho1-2ts mutant were suppressed by upregulation of Pkc1 but not by upregulation of Bni1, Fks or Skn7. Overexpression of Pkc1, but not overexpression of Bni1, Fks or Skn7, also rescued a tor2ts mutant, and deletion of BNI1 or SKN7 did not prevent the suppression of the tor2ts mutation by overexpressed Rom2. Furthermore, overexpression of the Pkc1-controlled mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase Mpk1 suppressed the actin defect of tor2ts and rho1-2ts mutants. Thus, Tor2 signals to the actin cytoskeleton via Rho1, Pkc1 and the cell integrity MAP kinase cascade.     

Regulation of the actin cytoskeleton organization in yeast by a novel serine/threonine kinase Prk1p

Normal actin cytoskeleton organization in budding yeast requires the function of the Pan1p/ End3p complex. Mutations in PAN1 and END3 cause defects in the organization of actin cytoskeleton and endocytosis. By screening for mutations that can suppress the temperature sensitivity of a pan1 mutant (pan1-4), a novel serine/threonine kinase Prk1p is now identified as a new factor regulating the actin cytoskeleton organization in yeast. The suppression of pan1-4 by prk1 requires the presence of mutant Pan1p. Although viable, the prk1 mutant is unable to maintain an asymmetric distribution of the actin cytoskeleton at 37 degreesC. Consistent with its role in the regulation of actin cytoskeleton, Prk1p localizes to the regions of cell growth and coincides with the polarized actin patches. Overexpression of the PRK1 gene in wild-type cells leads to lethality and actin cytoskeleton abnormalities similar to those exhibited by the pan1 and end3 mutants. In vitro phosphorylation assays demonstrate that Prk1p is able to phosphorylate regions of Pan1p containing the LxxQxTG repeats, including the region responsible for binding to End3p. Based on these findings, we propose that the Prk1 protein kinase regulates the actin cytoskeleton organization by modulating the activities of some actin cytoskeleton-related proteins such as Pan1p/End3p.     

ER membrane protein complex required for nuclear fusion

Diploid cells of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae form after the mating of two haploid cells of the opposite mating type. After fusion of the two plasma membranes of the mating cells, a dinucleated cell forms initially in which the two haploid nuclei then rapidly fuse to form a single diploid nucleus. This latter event, called karyogamy, can be divided into two distinct steps: the microtubule-based movement that causes the two nuclei to become closely juxtaposed and the fusion of the nuclear membranes. For the membrane fusion step, one required component, the ER luminal protein Kar2p (BiP), has been identified. For topological reasons, however, it has been unclear how Kar2p could function in this role. Kar2p is localized to the luminal (i.e., noncytoplasmic) face of the ER membrane, yet nuclear fusion must initiate from the cytosolic side of the outer nuclear membrane or the ER membrane with which it is contiguous. There is both genetic and biochemical evidence that Kar2p interacts with Sec63p, an ER membrane protein containing both luminal and cytosolic domains that is involved in protein translocation across the membrane. We have isolated novel sec63 mutant alleles that display severe karyogamy defects. Disruption of the genes encoding other Sec63p-associated proteins (Sec71p and Sec72p) also results in karyogamy defects. A suppressor mutant (sos1-1) partially corrects the translocation defect but does not alleviate the karyogamy defect. sec61 and sec62 mutant alleles that cause similar or more severe protein translocation defects show no karyogamy defects. Taken together, these results suggest a direct role for Sec63p, Sec71p, and Sec72p in nuclear membrane fusion and argue against the alternative interpretation that the karyogamy defects result as an indirect consequence of the impaired membrane translocation of another component(s) required for the process. We propose that an ER/nuclear membrane protein complex composed of Sec63p, Sec71p, and Sec72p plays a central role in mediating nuclear membrane fusion and requires ER luminally associated Kar2p for its function.     

Erv25p, a component of COPII-coated vesicles, forms a complex with Emp24p that is required for efficient endoplasmic reticulum to Golgi transport

COPII-coated endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-derived transport vesicles contain a distinct set of membrane-bound polypeptides. We have obtained the NH2-terminal amino acid sequence of polypeptide constituents found on purified vesicles and in this report investigate the 24- and 25-kDa species. The 24-kDa protein is identical to Emp24p, a type I transmembrane protein that is required for transport of a subset of secretory proteins from the ER to the Golgi complex (Schimm?ller, F., Singer-Krüger, B., Schr?der, S., Krüger, U., Barlowe, C., and Riezman, H. (1995) EMBO J. 14, 1329-1339). The 25-kDa protein, termed Erv25p (ER vesicle protein of 25 kDa), corresponds to an open reading frame found on chromosome XIII of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Erv25p shares overall sequence identity with Emp24p, but the two proteins are not functionally interchangeable. Antibodies directed against Erv25p reveal that Emp24p and Erv25p depend on each other for stability and form a protein complex that can be isolated after chemical cross-linking. Yeast strains lacking Erv25p (erv25Delta) are viable and display the same selective defect in transport of secretory proteins from the ER to Golgi complex as an emp24Delta strain. A cell-free assay that measures vesicle formation from ER membranes demonstrates that Erv25p and Emp24p are incorporated equally into ER-derived vesicles when COPII-coated budding is reconstituted. Vesicle formation from an erv25Delta strain, an emp24Delta strain and a double erv25Delta emp24Delta strain proceed at wild-type levels; however, incorporation of the Erv25p or the Emp24p protein into COPII-coated vesicles requires expression of both subunits. A potential model for transport of the Erv25p-Emp24p complex between the ER and Golgi compartments is discussed.     

Characterization of a novel yeast SNARE protein implicated in Golgi retrograde traffic

The protein trafficking machinery of eukaryotic cells is employed for protein secretion and for the localization of resident proteins of the exocytic and endocytic pathways. Protein transit between organelles is mediated by transport vesicles that bear integral membrane proteins (v-SNAREs) which selectively interact with similar proteins on the target membrane (t-SNAREs), resulting in a docked vesicle. A novel Saccharomyces cerevisiae SNARE protein, which has been termed Vti1p, was identified by its sequence similarity to known SNAREs. Vti1p is a predominantly Golgi-localized 25-kDa type II integral membrane protein that is essential for yeast viability. Vti1p can bind Sec17p (yeast SNAP) and enter into a Sec18p (NSF)-sensitive complex with the cis-Golgi t-SNARE Sed5p. This Sed5p/Vti1p complex is distinct from the previously described Sed5p/Sec22p anterograde vesicle docking complex. Depletion of Vti1p in vivo causes a defect in the transport of the vacuolar protein carboxypeptidase Y through the Golgi. Temperature-sensitive mutants of Vti1p show a similar carboxypeptidase Y trafficking defect, but the secretion of invertase and gp400/hsp150 is not significantly affected. The temperature-sensitive vti1 growth defect can be rescued by the overexpression of the v-SNARE, Ykt6p, which physically interacts with Vti1p. We propose that Vti1p, along with Ykt6p and perhaps Sft1p, acts as a retrograde v-SNARE capable of interacting with the cis-Golgi t-SNARE Sed5p.     

The presence of a Sar1 gene family in Brassica campestris that suppresses a yeast vesicular transport mutation Sec12-1

Two new members (Bsar1a and Bsar1b) of the Sar1 gene family have been identified from a flower bud cDNA library of Brassica campestris and their functional characteristics were analyzed. The two clones differ from each other at 14 positions of the 193 amino acid residues deduced from their coding region. The amino acid sequences of Bsar1a and Bsar1b are most closely related to the Sar1 family, genes that function early in the process of vesicle budding from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). The sequences contain all the conserved motifs of the Ras superfamily (G1-G4 motifs) as well as the distinctive structural feature near the C-terminus that is Sar1 specific. Our phylogenetic analysis confirmed that these two clones can indeed be considered members of the Sar1 family and that they have a close relationship to the ARF family. The Bsar1 proteins, expressed in Escherichia coli, cross-reacted with a polyclonal antibody prepared against Saccharomyces cerevisiae Sar1 protein. It also exhibited GTP-binding activity. Genomic Southern blot analysis, using the 3'-gene-specific regions of the Bsar1 cDNAs as probes, revealed that the two cDNA clones are members of a B. campestris Sar1 family that consists of 2 to 3 genes. RNA blot analysis, using the same gene-specific probes, showed that both genes are expressed with similar patterns in most tissues of the plant, including leaf, stem, root, and flower buds. Furthermore, when we placed the two Bsar1 genes under the control of the yeast pGK1 promoter into the temperature-sensitive mutant yeast strain S. cerevisiae Sec12-1, they suppressed the mutation which consists of a defect in vesicle transport. The amino acid sequence similarity, the GTP-binding activity, and the functional suppression of the yeast mutation suggest that the Bsar1 proteins are functional homologues of the Sar1 protein in S. cerevisiae and that they may perform similar biological functions.     

The exchange factor Ras-GRF2 activates Ras-dependent and Rac-dependent mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways

Ras and Rac are membrane-associated GTPases that function as molecular switches activating intracellular mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades and other effector pathways in response to extracellular signals [1]. Activation of Ras and Rac into their GTP-bound conformations is directly controlled by specific guanine-nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs), which catalyze GDP release. Several Ras-specific GEFs that are related to the budding yeast protein Cdc25p have been described, whereas GEFs for Rac-related GTPases contain a region that is homologous to the oncoprotein DbI [2-3]. The Ras-GRF1 and Ras-GRF2 proteins, which couple Ras activation to serpentine receptors and calcium signals, contain both Cdc25 and DbI homology (DH) regions [3-4]. Here, we demonstrate that Ras-GRF2 is a bifunctional signaling protein that is able to bind and activate Ras and Rac, and thereby coordinate the activation of the extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and stress-activated protein kinase (SAPK) pathways.