Turnover of polyadenylate-containing ribonucleic acid in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

We examined the kinetics of incorporation of [3H]adenine into polyadenylate-containing ribonucleic acid [poly(A)-containing RNA] in yeast. The total poly(A)-containing RNA from spheroplasts and intact cells and the polysomal poly(A)-containing RNA exhibited similar incorporation kinetics. At 30 C half-saturation of the pool of poly(A)-containing RNA with label occurred in approximately 22 min. Since precursor pools appeared to require 5 min to saturate with label, we conclude that at 30 C messenger RNA molecules in yeast decay with an average half-life of 17 min.     

Size and turnover of polyadenylic acid-containing ribonucleic acids in a fragile mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Ribonucleic acid-containing polyadenylic acid [poly(A)+-RNA] was studied in lysates from an osmotic-sensitive mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae characterized by low nuclease activity. The poly(A)+-RNA fraction, analyzed by electrophoresis in polyacrylamide-formamide gels, constitutes a heterogeneous population of molecules, with molecular weights ranging from 0.2 X 10(6) to 3 X 10(6) and having an average of 1.2 X 10(6). The turnover rate of poly(A)+-RNA was determined by the decay of radioactivity after a cold uracil chase, and the observed half-life of 21 min corresponds to about 10% of the cell doubling time. Poly(A)+-RNA was analyzed by gel electrophoresis under denaturing and non-denaturing conditions. A correlation was established between the apparent secondary structure and the turnover rate of poly(A)+-RNA species.     

Methionyl-transfer ribonucleic acid deficiency during G1 arrest of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The mesl- mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cease division and accumulate in the G1 interval of the cell cycle when deprived of methionine or shifted from 23 to 36 degrees C in the presence of methionine. Synchronous cell cycle arrest results from a deficiency of charged methionyl-transfer ribonucleic acid (methionyl-tRNAMet) as shown by direct measurement of the in vivo pools of methionine, S-adenosylmethionine, and methionyl-tRNAMet. The deficiency of methionyl-tRNAMet in these cells is the consequence of a lesion in a single gene, mes1. mes1 appears to be the structural gene for the methionyl-tRNA synthetase because some revertants of this mutation exhibited a thermolabile methionyl-tRNA synthetase in vitro. A sufficient hypothesis to explain these and previous results is that the control of cell division by S. cerevisiae in response to nutrient limitation is mediated through aminoacyl-tRNA or subsequent steps in protein biosynthesis.     

Killer double-stranded ribonucleic acid synthesis in cell division cycle mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The synthesis of killer double-stranded ribonucleic acid (dsRNA) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae was examined in seven different cell division cycle mutants (cdc) that are defective in nuclear deoxyribonucleic acid replication and contain the "killer character." In cdc28, cdc4, and cdc7, which are defective in the initiation of nuclear deoxyribonucleic acid synthesis, and in cdc23 or in cdc14, defective in medial or late nuclear division, an overproduction of dsRNA at the restrictive temperature was observed. In contrast to the above mutants, the synthesis of killer dsRNA is not enhanced at the restrictive temperature in either cdc8 or cdc21, which are defective in deoxyribonucleic acid chain elongation. Examination of killer sensitive strains (cdc7 K- and cdc4 K-) has shown that the complete killer dsRNA genome is essential for the overproduction of dsRNA at the restrictive temperature.     

Identification of an actin-like protein and of its messenger ribonucleic acid in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

We have identified a yeast protein that resembles actins from other eucaryotes in its tight binding to pancreatic deoxyribonuclease I, its copolymerizaton with purified muscle actin, its one-dimensional peptide map, and its apparent polymerization into 7-nm filaments. The yeast actin-like protein yielded a single spot on two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, suggesting that a single protein species was present. On sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the actin-like protein had an apparent molecular weight of 45,000 compared with 42,000 for muscle actin. In an attempt to identify the messenger ribonucleic acid coding for the actin-like protein, yeast polyadenylic acid-rich ribonucleic acid was translated in wheat germ and reticulocyte cell-free protein-synthesizing systems. The actin-like protein was identified among the translation products of the reticulocyte system by its tight binding to deoxyribonuclease I, its comigration with the in vivo-synthesized actin-like protein during sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, an the similarity of its peptide map to that of the in vivo-synthesized protein. A yeast protein synthesized in the wheat-germ system was also found to bind to deoxyribonuclease I and to copolymerize with muscle actin. However, its apparent molecular weight was about 35,000, suggesting that it was a product either of incomplete translation or of proteolytic cleavage of the actin-like protein.     

The polyadenylic sequences in the ribonucleic acid of the fern Anemia phyllitidis

The vegetative prothalli (1–3 weeks old) of Anemia were incubated for 24 h in [¹⁴C]adenine. The RNA was phenol extracted from whole cells and the poly (A) sequences were isolated by nuclease digestion followed by poly (U)-sepharose chromatography. About 2–3% of the total radioactivity was retained on the column. The base composition of the nuclease resistant RNA was: C, 1.4; G, 3.6; A, 93.3; and U, 1.7. It is concluded that Anemia RNA contains poly adenylate sequences.Part of a post-doctoral work. Fellowship awarded by Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung, Federal Republic of Germany     

Influence of pH on the rate of ribosomal ribonucleic acid synthesis during sporulation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The rate of synthesis of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) is much slower during sporulation than during vegetative growth of yeast. If sporulating cells are transferred from normal incubation conditions at pH 8.8 to the same medium adjusted to pH 7.0, the rate of rRNA synthesis increased to approach that observed in vegetative cells. The response to the pH change is quite rapid, occurring within 10 min. THE PH-dependent, rate-limiting step appears to be in the processing of 35S ribosomal precursor RNA to the final 26S and 18S RNA species. A similar pH effect also was found for the rate of protein synthesis. However, no change in respiration was observed when the pH was lowered. These results indicate that the observed differences in rate of rRNA synthesis in vegetative and sporulating cells are a consequence of pH and are not intrinsic to sporulation. The results also support the correlation between rRNA processing and protein synthesis.     

The stability, polyadenylic acid content and ribonucleoprotein form of nulcear ribonucleic acid in artichoke.

A nuclear preparation, containing 60-80% of the total tissue DNA and less than 0.5% of the total rRNA, was used to characterize the nuclear RNA species synthesized in cultured artichoke explants. The half-lives of the nuclear RNA species were estimated from first-order-decay analyses to be: hnRNA (heterogeneous nuclear RNA) containing poly(A), 38 min; hnRNA lacking poly(A), 37 min; 2.5 X 10(6)-mol. wt. precursor rRNA, 24 min; 1.4 X 10(6)-mol.wt. precursor rRNA, 58 min; 1.0 X 10(6)-mol.wt. precursor rRNA, 52 min. The shorter half-lives are probably overestimates, owing to the time required for equilibration of the nucleotide-precursor pools. The pathway of rRNA synthesis is considered in terms of these kinetic measurements. The rate of accumulation of cytoplasmic polydisperse RNA suggested that as much as 40% of the hnRNA may be transported to the cytoplasm. The 14-25% of the hnRNA that contained a poly(A) tract had an average molecular size of 0.7 X 10(6) daltons. The poly(A) segment was 40-200 nucleotides long, consisted of at least 95% AMP and accounted for 8-10% of the [32P]orthophosphate incorporated into the poly(A)-containing hnRNA. Ribonucleoprotein particles released from nuclei by sonication, lysis in EDTA or incubation in buffer were analysed by sedimentation through sucrose gradients and by isopycnic centrifugation in gradients of metrizamide and CsCl. More than 50% of the hnRNA remained bound to the chromatin after each treatment. The hnRNA was always associated with protein but the densities of isolated particles suggested that the ratio of protein to RNA was lower than that reported for mammalian cells, The particles separated from chromatin were not enriched for poly(A)-containing hnRNA.     

Synthesis of polyadenylic acid-containing ribonucleic acid during the germination of Neurospora crassa conidia.

Ribonucleic acid (RNA) synthesized during the first 1 h of conidial germination (15 to 20, 25 to 30, and 55 to 60 min) has been characterized by sucrose-sodium dodecyl sulfate gradient centrifugation, binding to polyuridylic acid filters, and oligo(dT)-cellulose chromatography. At all labeling periods examined, polyadenylic acid-containing RNA is synthesized, processed, and incorporated into polysomes. Approximately 40% of the labeled RNA sedimenting between 5 and 17S binds to polyuridylic acid filters. RNA which binds to oligo(dT)-cellulose displays a heterogeneous distribution in sucrose-sodium dodecyl sulfate gradients with a major, broad peak at 10-16S. In addition, some polyadenylic acid-containing RNA sediments beyond the 25S marker. Approximately 3% of the [3H]adenosine in pulse-labeled polysomal RNA is in polyadenylic acid segments resistant to pancreatic and T1 ribonucleases.     

Genetic analysis of Saccharomyces cerevisiae transformed by plasmid containing a supressor transfer ribonucleic acid gene.

The behavior in Saccharomyces cerevisiae of plasmid pYTE1, which contains yeast tyrosine-inserting ochre suppressor SUP4.o, a 4-kilobase EcoRI fragment of yeast 2muDNA, and the bacterial plasmid pBR322, has been studied. Selection of yeast transformants was by suppression of multiple ochre mutations. About 10(3) to 10(4) transformants per microgram of pYTE1 dfeoxyribonucleic acid were obtained. The majority of transformants contained both an integrated copy of the SUP4.o gene plus pBR322 deoxyribonucleic acid sequences and autonomously replicating forms of the plasmid. The integrated copy was extremely stable mitotically and meiotically, but the associated nonintegrated copies were lost at meiosis. The chromosomally integrated pBR322 sequences were linked to the SUP4.o gene. The integration site was at the SUP4+ locus. In transformants with only nonintegrated copies of pYTE1, the expression of suppression was reduced, and the plasmid was unstable in mitosis. Plasmid deoxyribonucleic acid preparations from both types of transformant could be used to retransform yeast cells. Plasmid pYTE1 has restriction enzyme sites useful for the high frequency and stable transformation of other genes into yeasts. The potential uses of this plasmid for transformation of other organisms is discussed.