甾醇C-24甲基转移酶和甾醇C-8异构酶在酿酒酵母麦角甾醇生物合成中的调控作用

摘要：【目的】研究ERG6基因编码的甾醇C-24甲基转移酶和ERG2基因编码的甾醇C-8异构酶在酿酒酵母麦角甾醇生物合成代谢中的调控作用。【方法】通过PCR扩增克隆到酿酒酵母甾醇C-8异构酶的编码序列及其终止子序列,以大肠杆菌-酿酒酵母穿梭质粒YEp352为载体,以磷酸甘油酸激酶基因PGK1启动子为上游调控元件构建了酵母菌表达质粒pPERG2;同时,在本实验室已构建的ERG6表达质粒pPERG6的基础上,构建了ERG2和ERG6共表达的重组质粒pPERG6-2。将表达质粒转化酿酒酵母单倍体菌株YS58,依据营养缺陷互补筛选到重组菌株YS58(pPERG2)和YS58(pPERG6-2)。通过紫外分光光度法和气相色谱法分析重组菌株甾醇组分和含量。【结果】在ERG6高表达的重组酵母菌中,甾醇中间体和终产物麦角甾醇的含量均比对照菌高;而在ERG2高表达的酵母菌株中,无论甾醇中间体,还是麦角甾醇的含量均明显降低。ERG6和ERG2共表达重组菌株YS58(pPERG6-2)的麦角甾醇含量是对照菌株YS58(YEp352)的1.41倍,是ERG2单独高表达菌株YS58(pPERG2)的1.92倍,是ERG6单独高表达菌株YS58(pPERG6)的1.12倍。【结论】本研究首次证明甾醇C-24甲基转移酶催化的反应是酿酒酵母麦角甾醇合成代谢途径中的一个重要的限速步骤,该酶活性提高不但补偿了ERG2高表达对甾醇合成的负效应,而且使麦角甾醇含量进一步提高,为构建麦角甾醇高产酵母工程菌株提供了实验依据。     

甾醇C-24甲基转移酶基因在酿酒酵母中的内源表达及工程菌麦角甾醇的合成

通过高保真PCR克隆到含酿酒酵母甾醇C-24甲基转移酶基因编码序列及终止子序列的DNA片段ERG6, 以大肠杆菌-酿酒酵母穿梭质粒YEp352为载体, 磷酸甘油酸激酶基因PGK1启动子为上游调控元件构建了酵母菌表达质粒pPERG6。通过同源重组, 以铜离子螯合蛋白基因CUP1替换染色体上ERG6基因内部序列获得ERG6破坏菌株YS58-erg6, 其中麦角甾醇的合成被阻断, 同时细胞的生长也受到明显抑制。表达质粒pPERG6转化破坏菌株YS58-erg6后, 不但使细胞恢复了合成麦角甾醇的能力, 细胞生物量也得到明显提高, 这说明表达质粒上的ERG6基因得到了功能性的表达。分别用载体质粒YEp352和表达质粒pPERG6转化酿酒酵母单倍体菌株YS58, 获得对照菌株YS58(YEp352)和重组菌株YS58(pPERG6)。重组菌株YS58(pPERG6) 生物量和麦角甾醇含量分别是对照菌YS58(YEp352)的1.23和1.32倍。可见甾醇C-24甲基转移酶基因的高表达可以增强酵母细胞麦角甾醇的合成能力。     

甾醇C-22去饱和酶高表达对酵母细胞麦角甾醇合成的影响

通过PCR扩增克隆到酵母菌甾醇C-22去饱和酶基因(ERG5)的编码序列及其终止子序列,以大肠杆菌-酿酒酵母穿梭质粒YEp352为载体,以磷酸甘油酸激酶基因PGK1启动子为上游调控元件构建了酵母菌表达质粒pYPE5。以铜离子螯合蛋白基因CUP1替换ERG5基因内部序列获得ERG5破坏菌株YSE5,其中麦角甾醇的合成被阻断,而积累了甾醇中间体Ergosta-5,7-dien-3β-ol。表达质粒pYPE5转化破坏菌株后使细胞恢复了合成麦角甾醇的能力。说明表达质粒上的ERG5基因得到了功能性的表达。将表达质粒pYPE5转化酿酒酵母单倍体菌株YS58,通过营养缺陷互补筛选到重组菌株YS58(pYPE5)。对重组菌株、破坏菌株和互补菌株细胞甾醇组分和含量进行测定,发现重组菌株和互补菌株的麦角甾醇和总甾醇含量明显低于对照菌YS58(YEp352)。测定不同培养时间细胞的麦角甾醇含量,发现重组菌株的麦角甾醇含量始终低于对照菌YS58(YEp352)。可见,ERG5在酵母中的高表达导致细胞麦角甾醇含量降低。     

Cloning, disruption and sequence of the gene encoding yeast C-5 sterol desaturase

The ERG3 gene from Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been cloned by complementation of an erg3-2 mutation. ERG3 is the putative gene encoding the C-5 sterol desaturase required for ergosterol biosynthesis. The functional gene has been localized on a 2.5-kb HindIII-BamHI fragment containing an open reading frame comprising 365 amino acids. Gene disruption resulting from a deletion/substitution demonstrates that ERG3 is not essential for cell viability or the sparking function.     

Nucleotide sequence of the gene encoding yeast C-8 sterol isomerase.

The ERG2 gene encoding the Saccharomyces cerevisiae C-8 sterol isomerase, an enzyme involved in plant, animal, and fungal sterol biosynthesis was sequenced. A large open reading frame comprising 222 amino acids was observed.     

近平滑念珠菌ERG 11基因编码区的克隆及生物信息学分析

目的克隆、测序近平滑念珠菌ERG11基因的编码区序列并进行生物信息学分析。方法运用生物信息学的方法 ,通过与白念珠菌ERG11基因碱基序列同源性比对,在近平滑念珠菌基因组(www.sanger.ac.uk/sequencing/Candida/pa-rapsilosis/)中寻找可能的ERG11基因序列(CpERG11),并据此序列设计引物,经PCR扩增近平滑念珠菌标准株(ATCC22019)的ERG11基因片段,产物经电泳、纯化、克隆到质粒prG-AMAI-NotI中,转染DH10B大肠杆菌细胞,并酶切鉴定筛选阳性克隆测序分析。结果近平滑念珠菌ERG11编码区由1569个碱基组成,编码一段含522个氨基酸的多肽。近平滑念珠菌ERG11的编码区序列与白念珠菌、热带念珠菌、光滑念珠菌、酿酒酵母菌ERG11基因的同源性分别为74%、75%、65%、64%。该近平滑念珠菌ERG11的编码区为唑类药物作用靶酶基因。结论成功克隆、测序、并生物信息学分析近平滑念珠菌ERG11基因的编码区序列,为进一步的功能研究奠定基础。     

Cloning, sequencing, and disruption of the gene encoding sterol C-14 reductase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

A sterol C-14 reductase (erg24-1) mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was selected in a fen1, fen2, suppressor background on the basis of nystatin resistance and ignosterol (ergosta-8,14-dienol) production. The erg24-1 allele segregated genetically as a single, recessive gene. The wild-type ERG24 gene was cloned by complementation onto a 12-kb fragment from a yeast genomic library, and subsequently subcloned onto a 2.4-kb fragment. This was sequenced and found to contain an open reading frame of 1,314 bp, predicting a polypeptide of 438 amino acids (M(r) 50,612). A 1,088-bp internal region of the ERG24 gene was excised, replaced with a LEU2 gene, and integrated into the chromosome of the parental strain, FP13D (fen1, fen2) by gene replacement. The ERG24 null mutant produced ergosta-8,14-dienol as the major sterol, indicating that the delta 8-7 isomerase, delta 5-desaturase and the delta 22-desaturase were inactive on sterols with the C14 = 15 double bond.     

Aerobic isolation of an ERG24 null mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The ERG24 gene, encoding the C-14 sterol reductase, has been reported to be essential to the aerobic growth of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We report here, however, that strains with null mutations in the ERG24 gene can grow on defined synthetic media in aerobic conditions. These sterol mutants produce ignosterol (ergosta-8,14-dienol) as the principal sterol, with no traces of ergosterol. In addition, we mapped the ERG24 gene to chromosome XIV between the MET2 and SEC2 genes. Our results indicate that ignosterol can be a suitable sterol for aerobic growth of S. cerevisiae on synthetic media and that inactivation of ERG24 is only conditionally lethal.     

The yeast gene ERG6 is required for normal membrane function but is not essential for biosynthesis of the cell-cycle-sparking sterol.

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, methylation of the principal membrane sterol at C-24 produces the C-28 methyl group specific to ergosterol and represents one of the few structural differences between ergosterol and cholesterol. C-28 in S. cerevisiae has been suggested to be essential for the sparking function (W. J. Pinto and W. R. Nes, J. Biol. Chem. 258:4472-4476, 1983), a cell cycle event that may be required to enter G1 (C. Dahl, H.-P. Biemann, and J. Dahl, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 84:4012-4016, 1987). The sterol biosynthetic pathway in S. cerevisiae was genetically altered to assess the functional role of the C-28 methyl group of ergosterol. ERG6, the putative structural gene for S-adenosylmethionine: delta 24-methyltransferase, which catalyzes C-24 methylation, was cloned, and haploid strains containing erg6 null alleles (erg6 delta 1 and erg6 delta ::LEU2) were generated. Although erg6 delta cells are unable to methylate ergosterol precursors at C-24, they exhibit normal vegatative growth, suggesting that C-28 sterols are not essential in S. cerevisiae. However, erg6 delta cells exhibit pleiotropic phenotypes that include defective conjugation, hypersensitivity to cycloheximide, resistance to nystatin, a severely diminished capacity for genetic transformation, and defective tryptophan uptake. These phenotypes reflect the role of ergosterol as a regulator of membrane permeability and fluidity. Genetic mapping experiments revealed that ERG6 is located on chromosome XIII, tightly linked to sec59.     

The gene encoding squalene epoxidase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae: cloning and characterization.

The gene (ERG1) encoding squalene epoxidase (ERG) from Saccharomyces cerevisiae was cloned. It was isolated from a gene library, prepared from an allylamine-resistant (AlR) S. cerevisiae mutant, by screening transformants in a sensitive strain for AlR colonies. The ERG tested in a cell-free extract from one of these transformants proved to be resistant to the Al derivative, terbinafine. From this result, we concluded that the recombinant plasmid in the transformant carried an allelic form of the ERG1 gene. The nucleotide sequence showed the presence of one open reading frame coding for a 55,190-Da peptide of 496 amino acids. Southern hybridization experiments allowed us to localize the ERG1 gene on yeast chromosome 15.     

Metabolism of delta24-sterols by yeast mutants blocked in removal of the C-14 methyl group.

We have investigated the metabolism of exogenously provided delta24-sterols by whole cell cultures of a polyene-resistant mutant (D10) of Candida albicans blocked at removal of the C-14 methyl group. Comparison of the relative efficiencies of transmethylation at C-24 of selected sterol substrates revealed the following substrate preferences of the Candida delta24-sterol methyltransferase (EC 2.1.1.41): zymosterol greater than 4alpha-methylzymosterol greater than 14alpha-methylzymosterol. Exogenous 4,4-dimethylzymosterol was not transmethylated by mutant D10. Incorporation of the 14C-labelled methyl group of S-adenosyl-L-[methyl-14C]methionine into the sterols of a D10 culture preloaded with zymosterol indicated that zymosterol was a better (40 X) substrate than endogenous lanosterolmfeeding zymosterol to D10 and a polyene-resistant strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Nys-P100) that was also blocked at removal of the C-14 methyl group gave 24-methyl sterols possessing delta22 and ring B unsaturation. Mutant D10 was able to produce ergosterol from zymosterol whereas Nys-P100 produced ergosta-7,22-dienol. When grown in the presence of 3 micrometer 25-aza-24,25-dihydrozymosterol, a known inhibitor of the delta24-sterol methyltransferase, Nys-P100 accumulated 14alpha-methylzymosterol, a minor metabolite in this mutant under normal growth conditions and hitherto unidentified as a yeast sterol.     

Functional expression of the Candida albicans beta-tubulin gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Expression of the beta-tubulin-encoding gene (TUB2) of Candida albicans has been examined in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Overexpression of the TUB2 gene of C. albicans, as well as that of S. cerevisiae, was found to be lethal. Chromosomal integration of the C. albicans TUB2 gene into a strain in which the native TUB2 gene had been deleted led to functional complementation. The results demonstrate that correct splicing of the two introns present in the C. albicans TUB2 gene occurs in the heterologous host strain containing this gene. Such strains are supersensitive to the tubulin-binding agent benomyl, indicating that the natural resistance of C. albicans to benomyl is not related to the structure of its beta-tubulin.     

Functional Characterization of the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii ERG3 Ortholog,a Gene Involved in the Biosynthesis of Ergosterol

Background

The predominant sterol in the membranes of the alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is ergosterol, which is commonly found in the membranes of fungi, but is rarely found in higher plants. Higher plants and fungi synthesize sterols by different pathways, with plants producing cycloartenol as a precursor to end-product sterols, while non-photosynthesizing organisms like yeast and humans produce lanosterol as a precursor. Analysis of the C. reinhardtii genome sequence reveals that this algae is also likely to synthesize sterols using a pathway resembling the higher plant pathway, indicating that its sterols are synthesized somewhat differently than in fungi. The work presented here seeks to establish experimental evidence to support the annotated molecular function of one of the sterol biosynthetic genes in the Chlamydomonas genome.

Methodology/Principal Findings

A gene with homology to the yeast sterol C-5 desaturase, ERG3, is present in the Chlamydomonas genome. To test whether the ERG3 ortholog of C. reinhardtii encodes a sterol C-5 desaturase, Saccharomyces cerevisiae ERG3 knockout strains were created and complemented with a plasmid expressing the Chlamydomonas ERG3. Expression of C. reinhardtii ERG3 cDNA in erg3 null yeast was able to restore ergosterol biosynthesis and reverse phenotypes associated with lack of ERG3 function.

Conclusions/Significance

Complementation of the yeast erg3 null phenotypes strongly suggests that the gene annotated as ERG3 in C. reinhardtii functions as a sterol C-5 desaturase.