Identification of the DNA-binding domains of the switch-activating-protein Sap1 from S.pombe by random point mutations screening in E.coli.

Mating type switching in fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, is initiated by a site-specific double-strand break (DSB) at the mat1 locus. The DSB is controlled from a distance by cis- and trans-acting elements. The switch-activating protein, Sap1 binds to the SAS1 cis-acting element which controls the frequency of the DSB at the mat1 locus and, consequently the efficiency of mating type switching. We developed a general method for screening randomly mutagenized expression libraries of DNA-binding protein in E.coli. Sap1 gene was mutagenized by PCR under conditions of reduced Taq polymerase fidelity. The mutated DNA was expressed in E.coli and screened for SAS1-recognition. This method was used to isolated 16 point mutations that abolished SAS1 interaction together with 18 mutations that did not affect binding. The position of these point mutations allowed the identification of three protein domains located in the N-terminal part of Sap1 that are essential for DNA-binding. Deletions and biochemical analysis showed that Sap1 is a dimer both in solution and when bound to SAS1 sequence. The dimerization domain was localized C-terminally to the three domains described above and when used in exess it inhibited DNA binding.     

The Mechanism of Fission Yeast Mating Type Interconversion: Seal/Replicate/Cleave Model of Replication across the Double-Stranded Break Site at Mat1

The interconversion of cell type in the fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, is initiated by a double-stranded break (DSB) found at the mating type locus (mat1). A heritable site- and strand-specific DNA "imprinting" event at mat1 was recently hypothesized to be required to make the mat1 locus cleavable, and the DSB was suggested to be produced one generation before the actual switching event. It is known that only one cell among four granddaughters of a cell ever switches, and the sister of the recently switched cell switches efficiently in consecutive cell divisions. The feature of consecutive switching creates a major difficulty of having to replicate chromosomes possessing the DSB. The mat1 cis-acting leaky mutation, called smt-s, reduces the level of the DSB required for switching and is shown here to be a 27-bp deletion located 50 bp away from the cut site. Determination of the pattern and frequency of switching of the mutant allele by cell lineage studies has allowed us to conclude the following: (1) the chromosome with the DSB is sealed and replicated, then one of the specific chromatids is cleaved again to generate switching-competent cells in consecutive cell divisions and (2) the smt-s mutation affects DNA cleavage and not the hypothesized DNA imprinting step.     

Sap1, a protein that binds to sequences required for mating-type switching, is essential for viability in Schizosaccharomyces pombe.

The pattern of mating-type switching in cell pedigrees of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe is dictated by the inheritance of specific DNA chains at the mating-type locus (mat1). The recombination event essential for switching is initiated by a site-specific double-strand break at mat1. The switch-activating protein, Sap1, binds in vitro to a mat1 cis-acting site that was shown earlier to be essential for efficient mating-type switching. We isolated the sap1 gene by using oligonucleotides corresponding to the amino acid sequence of purified Sap1 protein. The sequence of that gene predicted a 30-kDa protein with no significant homology to other canonical DNA-binding protein motifs. To facilitate its biochemical characterization, Sap1 was expressed in Escherichia coli. The protein expressed in bacteria displayed the same DNA-binding specificities as the protein purified from S. pombe. Interestingly, analysis of a sap1 null mutation showed that the gene is essential for growth even in a strain in which mating-type switching is prohibited because of a defect in generation of the double-strand break. Thus, the sap1 gene product implicated in mating-type switching is shown to be essential for cell viability.     

The role of recombinational repair proteins in mating type switching in fission yeast cells

DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) occur after exposing cells to ionizing radiation or under the action of various antitumor antibiotics. They can be also generated in the course cell processes, such as meiosis and mating type switching in yeast. The most preferential mechanism for the correction of DNA DSB in yeasts is recombinational repair controlled by RAD52 group genes. The role of recombinational repair in mating type switching of fission yeast cells was examined on the example of genes of this group, rhp51+ and rhp51+. We constructed homothallic strains of genotypes h90 rhp51 and h90 rhp55, and found that mutant cells yielded colonies with the mottled phenotype. In addition, h90 cells with deletions in these genes were shown to segregate heterothallic iodine-negative colonies h- and h+. The genome region, responsible for the switching process in these segregants, was analyzed by DNA hybridization. As shown in this analysis, h+ segregants had the h+N or h90 configuration of the mat region, whereas h-, the h90 configuration. Segregants h+ contained DNA duplication in the mat region. DNA rearrangements were not detected at the mating type locus, but the level of DNA DSB formation was drastically decreased in these segregants. Thus, our results show that genes rhp51+ and rhp55+ are involved not only in the repair of induced DNA DSB, but also in the mechanism of mating type switching in fission yeast.     

Biochemical interactions between proteins and mat1 cis-acting sequences required for imprinting in fission yeast

DNA recombination required for mating type (mat1) switching in Schizosaccharomyces pombe is initiated by mat1 imprinting. The imprinting event is regulated by mat1 cis-acting elements and by several trans-acting factors, including swi1 (for switch), swi3, swi7, and sap1. swi1 and swi3 were previously shown to function in dictating unidirectional mat1 DNA replication by controlling replication fork movement around the mat1 region and, second, by pausing fork progression around the imprint site. With biochemical studies, we investigated whether the trans-acting factors function indirectly or directly by binding to the mat1 cis-acting sequences. First, we report the identification and DNA sequence of the swi3 gene. swi3 is not essential for viability, and, like the other factors, it exerts a stimulatory effect on imprinting. Second, we showed that only Swi1p and Swi3p interact to form a multiprotein complex and that complex formation did not require their binding to a DNA region defined by the smt-0 mutation. Third, we found that the Swi1p-Swi3p complex physically binds to a region around the imprint site where pausing of replication occurs. Fourth, the protein complex also interacted with the mat1-proximal polar terminator of replication (RTS1). These results suggest that the stimulatory effect of swi1 and swi3 on switching and imprinting occurs through interaction of the Swi1p-Swi3p complex with the mat1 regions.     

Fission yeast switches mating type by a replication-recombination coupled process

Fission yeast exhibits a homothallic life cycle, in which the mating type of the cell mitotically alternates in a highly regulated fashion. Pedigree analysis of dividing cells has shown that only one of the two sister cells switches mating type. It was shown recently that a site- and strand-specific DNA modification at the mat1 locus precedes mating-type switching. By tracking the fate of mat1 DNA throughout the cell cycle with a PCR assay, we identified a novel DNA intermediate of mating-type switching in S-phase. The time and rate of appearance and disappearance of this DNA intermediate are consistent with a model in which mating-type switching occurs through a replication-recombination coupled pathway. Such a process provides experimental evidence in support of a copy choice recombination model in Schizosaccharomyces pombe mating-type switching and is reminiscent of the sister chromatid recombination used to complete replication in the presence of certain types of DNA damage.     

Dual chromatin remodeling roles for RSC during DNA double strand break induction and repair at the yeast MAT locus

DNA double strand breaks (DSBs) are potentially serious chromosomal lesions. However, cells sometimes deliberately cleave their own DNA to facilitate certain chromosomal processes, and there is much interest in how such self-inflicted breaks are effectively managed. Eukaryotic DSBs occur in the context of chromatin and the RSC chromatin-remodeling ATPase complex has been shown to promote DSB repair at the budding yeast MAT locus DSB, created by the HO endonuclease during mating type switching. We show that the role of RSC at MAT is highly specialized. The Rsc1p subunit of RSC directs nucleosome sliding immediately after DSB creation at both MAT and generally and is required for efficient DNA damage-induced histone H2A phosphorylation and strand resection during repair by homologous recombination. However, the Rsc2p and Rsc7p subunits are additionally required to set up a basal MAT locus structure. This RSC-dependent chromatin structure at MAT ensures accessibility to the HO endonuclease. The RSC complex therefore has chromatin remodeling roles both before and after DSB induction at MAT, promoting both DNA cleavage and subsequent repair.     

Analysis of mutations in the mat1 region of Schizosaccharomyces pombe strain with the deletion of gene rhp55+

DNA double-strand breaks may occur both under the action of various exogenous factors and in the course of cell metabolism processes, in particular, upon mating type switching in yeast. Genes belonging to the epistatic group RAD52 are known to repair such DNA damage. Molecular defects in mating type switching occurring after the deletion of gene rhp55+ encoding the paralog of recombinational protein Rhp51, which is a functional homolog of Escherichia coli RecA, were studied in fission yeast. Analysis of stable nonswitching segregants in h90 rhp55 mutants with unchanged configuration of the mating type switching locus but with a drastically decreased level of double-strand DNA break formation at the mat1 :1 locus demonstrated changes in DNA sequences within the region responsible for the generation of the breaks. These changes might have resulted from incorrect gene conversion upon repair of double-strand DNA breaks in Schizosaccharomyces pombe rhp55 mutants.     

Initiation of meiotic recombination by double-strand DNA breaks in S. pombe

Mitotic gene conversion and reciprocal recombination have recently been shown to be efficiently initiated by double-strand DNA breaks (DSBs) in both Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe. We tested whether DSBs could also initiate meiotic recombination at the mat1 locus in S. pombe. The mat1 switching-mechanism-generated DSB found in mitotically growing cells can be repaired without mat1 switching, since strains deleted for both donor loci (mat2-P and mat3-M) have the break but do not produce inviable cells. A (mat1-P X mat1-M) cross produced a high frequency (20%) of 3:1 gene conversions of mat1 in meiotic tetrads. Gene conversion events were associated with the recombination of flanking markers. Strains lacking the DSB failed to convert. Thus, the DSB at mat1 promotes efficient meiotic recombination in fission yeast.     

Homothallic switching of Saccharomyces cerevisiae mating type genes by using a donor containing a large internal deletion.

Homothallic switching of the mating type genes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae occurs by a gene conversion event, replacing sequences at the expressed MAT locus with a DNA segment copied from one of two unexpressed loci, HML or HMR. The transposed Ya or Y alpha sequences are flanked by homologous regions that are believed to be essential for switching. We examined the transposition of a mating type gene (hmr alpha 1-delta 6) which contains a 150-base-pair deletion spanning the site where the HO endonuclease generates a double-stranded break in MAT that initiates the gene conversion event. Despite the fact that the ends of the cut MAT region no longer share homology with the donor hmr alpha 1-delta 6, switching of MATa or MAT alpha to mat alpha 1-delta 6 was efficient. However, there was a marked increase in the number of aberrant events, especially the formation of haploid-inviable fusions between MAT and the hmr alpha 1-delta 6 donor locus.     

Rearrangements of the transposable mating-type cassettes of fission yeast.

The fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, switches mating type every few cell divisions. Switching is controlled by the genes of the mating-type locus, which consists of three components, mat1, mat2-P and mat3-M, each separated by approximately 15 kb. Copy transposition of P (Plus) or M (Minus) information from mat2-P or mat3-M into the expression locus mat1 mediates cell type switching. The mating-type locus undergoes events at high frequency (10(-2)-10(-6)) which stabilize one or other mating type. These events are shown to be rearrangements which result in either deletion or insertion of DNA between cassettes.     

Mating type-like conversion promoted by the 2 micrograms circle site-specific recombinase: implications for the double-strand-gap repair model.

Double-strand breaks in DNA are known to promote recombination in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Yeast mating type switching, which is a highly efficient gene conversion event, is apparently initiated by a site-specific double-strand break. The 2 micrograms circle site-specific recombinase, FLP, has been shown to make double-strand breaks in its substrate DNA. By using a hybrid 2 micrograms circle::Tn5 plasmid, a portion of which resembles, in its DNA organization, the active (MAT) and the silent (HML) yeast mating type loci, it is shown that FLP mediates a conversion event analogous to mating type switching. Whereas the FLP site-specific recombination is not dependent on the RAD52 gene product, the FLP-induced conversion is abolished in a rad52 background. The FLP-promoted conversion in vivo can be faithfully reproduced by making a double-stranded gap in vitro in the vicinity of the FLP site and allowing the gap to be repaired in vivo.     

Directionality of Fission Yeast Mating-Type Interconversion Is Controlled by the Location of the Donor Loci

Cells of homothallic strains of Schizosaccharomyces pombe efficiently switch between two mating types called P and M. The phenotypic switches are due to conversion of the expressed mating-type locus (mat1) by two closely linked silent loci, mat2-P and mat3-M, that contain unexpressed information for the P and M mating types, respectively. In this process, switching-competent cells switch to the opposite mating type in 72-90% of the cell divisions. Hence, mat2-P is a preferred donor of information to mat1 in M cells, whereas mat3-M is a preferred donor in P cells. We investigated the reason for the donor preference by constructing a strain in which the genetic contents of the donor loci were swapped. We found that switching to the opposite mating type was very inefficient in that strain. This shows that the location of the silent cassettes in the chromosome, rather than their content, is the deciding factor for recognition of the donor for each cell type. We propose a model in which switching is achieved by regulating accessibility of the donor loci, perhaps by changing the chromatin structure in the mating-type region, thus promoting an intrachromosomal folding of mat2 or mat3 onto mat1 in a cell type-specific fashion. We also present evidence for the involvement of the Swi6 and Swi6-mod trans-acting factors in the donor-choice mechanism. We suggest that these factors participate in forming the proposed folded structure.     

Analysis of mutations in the mat1 region of Schizosaccharomyces pombe strain with the deletion of gene rhp55 +

DNA double-strand breaks may occur both under the action of various exogenous factors and in the course of cell metabolism processes, in particular, upon mating type switching in yeast. Genes belonging to the epistatic group RAD52 are known to repiar such DNA damage. Molecular defects in mating type switching occurring after the deletion of gene rhp55 ⁺ encoding the paralog of recombinational protein Rhp51, which is a functional homolog of Escherichia coli RecA, were studied in fission yeast. Analysis of stable nonswitching segregants in h ⁹⁰ rhp55 mutants with unchanged configuration of the mating type switching locus but with a drastically decreased level of double-strand DNA break formation at the mat1:1 locus demonstrated changes in DNA sequences within the region responsible for the generation of the breaks. These changes might have resulted from incorrect gene conversion upon repair of double-strand DNA breaks in Schizosaccharomyces pombe rhp55 mutants.     

Homothallic switching of yeast mating type cassettes is initiated by a double-stranded cut in the MAT locus

A double-stranded DNA cut has been observed in the mating type (MAT) locus of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae in cultures undergoing homothallic cassette switching. Cutting is observed in exponentially growing cells of genotype HO HML alpha MAT alpha HMR alpha or HO HMLa MATa HMRa, which switch continuously, but not in a/alpha HO/HO diploid strains, in which homothallic switching is known to be shut off. Stationary phase cultures do not exhibit the cut. Although this site-specific cut occurs in a sequence (Z1) common to the silent HML and HMR cassettes and to MAT, only the Z1 sequence at the MAT locus is cut. The cut at MAT occurs in the absence of the HML and HMR donor cassettes, suggesting that cutting initiates the switching process. An assay for switching on hybrid plasmids containing mata- cassettes has been devised, and deletion mapping has shown that the cut site is required for efficient switching. Thus a double-stranded cut at the MAT locus appears to initiate cassette transposition-substitution and defines MAT as the recipient in this process.     

A Suppressor of Mating-Type Locus Mutations in SACCHAROMYCES CEREVISIAE: Evidence for and Identification of Cryptic Mating-Type Loci

A mutation has been identified that suppresses the mating and sporulation defects of all mutations in the mating-type loci of S. cerevisiae. This suppressor, sir1-1, restores mating ability to mat alpha 1 and mat alpha 2 mutants and restores sporulation ability to mat alpha 2 and mata1 mutants. MATa sir1-1 strains exhibit a polar budding pattern and have reduced sensitivity to alpha-factor, both properties of a/alpha diploids. Furthermore, sir1-1 allows MATa/MATa, mat alpha 1/mat alpha/, and MAT alpha/MAT alpha strains to sporulate efficiently. All actions of sir1-1 are recessive to SIR1. The ability of sir1-1 to supply all functions necessary for mating and sporulation and its effects in a cells are explained by proposing that sir1-1 allows expression of mating type loci which are ordinarily not expressed. The ability of sir1-1 to suppress the mat alpha 1-5 mutation is dependent on the HMa gene, previously identified as required for switching of mating types from a to alpha. Thus, as predicted by the cassette model, HMa is functionally equivalent to MAT alpha since it supplies functions of MAT alpha. We propose that sir1-1 is defective in a function. Sir ("Silent-information regulator"), whose role may be to regulate expression of HMa and HM alpha.