Cell Cycle Arrest of Cdc Mutants and Specificity of the Rad9 Checkpoint

In eucaryotes a cell cycle control called a checkpoint ensures that mitosis occurs only after chromosomes are completely replicated and any damage is repaired. The function of this checkpoint in budding yeast requires the RAD9 gene. Here we examine the role of the RAD9 gene in the arrest of the 12 cell division cycle (cdc) mutants, temperature-sensitive lethal mutants that arrest in specific phases of the cell cycle at a restrictive temperature. We found that in four cdc mutants the cdc rad9 cells failed to arrest after a shift to the restrictive temperature, rather they continued cell division and died rapidly, whereas the cdc RAD cells arrested and remained viable. The cell cycle and genetic phenotypes of the 12 cdc RAD mutants indicate the function of the RAD9 checkpoint is phase-specific and signal-specific. First, the four cdc RAD mutants that required RAD9 each arrested in the late S/G(2) phase after a shift to the restrictive temperature when DNA replication was complete or nearly complete, and second, each leaves DNA lesions when the CDC gene product is limiting for cell division. Three of the four CDC genes are known to encode DNA replication enzymes. We found that the RAD17 gene is also essential for the function of the RAD9 checkpoint because it is required for phase-specific arrest of the same four cdc mutants. We also show that both X- or UV-irradiated cells require the RAD9 and RAD17 genes for delay in the G(2) phase. Together, these results indicate that the RAD9 checkpoint is apparently activated only by DNA lesions and arrests cell division only in the late S/G(2) phase.     

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae spindle pole body duplication gene MPS1 is part of a mitotic checkpoint

M-phase checkpoints inhibit cell division when mitotic spindle function is perturbed. Here we show that the Saccharomyces cerevisiae MPS1 gene product, an essential protein kinase required for spindle pole body (SPB) duplication (Winey et al., 1991; Lauze et al., 1995), is also required for M-phase check-point function. In cdc31-2 and mps2-1 mutants, conditional failure of SPB duplication results in cell cycle arrest with high p34CDC28 kinase activity that depends on the presence of the wild-type MAD1 checkpoint gene, consistent with checkpoint arrest of mitosis. In contrast, mps1 mutant cells fail to duplicate their SPBs and do not arrest division at 37 degrees C, exhibiting a normal cycle of p34CDC28 kinase activity despite the presence of a monopolar spindle. Double mutant cdc31-2, mps1-1 cells also fail to arrest mitosis at 37 degrees C, despite having SPB structures similar to cdc31-2 single mutants as determined by EM analysis. Arrest of mitosis upon microtubule depolymerization by nocodazole is also conditionally absent in mps1 strains. This is observed in mps1 cells synchronized in S phase with hydroxyurea before exposure to nocodazole, indicating that failure of checkpoint function in mps1 cells is independent of SPB duplication failure. In contrast, hydroxyurea arrest and a number of other cdc mutant arrest phenotypes are unaffected by mps1 alleles. We propose that the essential MPS1 protein kinase functions both in SPB duplication and in a mitotic checkpoint monitoring spindle integrity.     

DNA replication is completed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells that lack functional Cdc14, a dual-specificity protein phosphatase

The Cdc14 protein encodes a dual-specificity protein phosphatase which functions in late mitosis, and considerable genetic evidence suggests a role in DNA replication. We find that cdc14 mutants arrested in late mitosis maintain persistent levels of mitotic kinase activity, suggesting that Cdc14 controls inactivation of this kinase. Overexpression of Sic1, a cyclin-dependent protein kinase inhibitor, is able to suppress telophase mutants such as dbf2, cdc5 and cdc15, but not cdc14. It does, however, force cdc14-arrested cells into the next cell cycle, in which an apparently normal S phase occurs as judged by FACS and pulsed-field gel electrophoretic analysis. Furthermore, in a promoter shut-off experiment, cells lacking Cdc14 appear to carry out a normal S phase. Thus Cdc14 functions mainly in late mitosis and it has no essential role in S phase.     

DNA replication is completed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells that lack functional Cdc14, a dual-specificity protein phosphatase

The Cdc14 protein encodes a dual-specificity protein phosphatase which functions in late mitosis, and considerable genetic evidence suggests a role in DNA replication. We find that cdc14 mutants arrested in late mitosis maintain persistent levels of mitotic kinase activity, suggesting that Cdc14 controls inactivation of this kinase. Overexpression of Sic1, a cyclin-dependent protein kinase inhibitor, is able to suppress telophase mutants such as dbf2, cdc5 and cdc15, but not cdc14. It does, however, force cdc14-arrested cells into the next cell cycle, in which an apparently normal S phase occurs as judged by FACS and pulsed-field gel electrophoretic analysis. Furthermore, in a promoter shut-off experiment, cells lacking Cdc14 appear to carry out a normal S phase. Thus Cdc14 functions mainly in late mitosis and it has no essential role in S phase. Received: 9 January 1998 / Accepted: 22 January 1998     

Segregation of the nucleolus during mitosis in budding and fission yeast.

The segregation of the nucleolus during mitosis was examined in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe by indirect immunofluorescence using antibodies directed to highly conserved anti-nucleolus antigens. In mitotic S. pombe cells, the nucleolus appears to trail the bulk of the DNA. In wild-type cells of S. cerevisiae, the nucleolus segregates alongside the bulk of the genomic DNA. Based on its distance from the centromere, we would expect the rDNA in both organisms to segregate behind the majority of the genomic DNA, if telomeric regions trail centromeric regions as in other eukaryotes. We therefore suggest that in S. cerevisiae the nucleolus is attached to other parts of the nucleus which enable it to segregate along with the bulk of the DNA. The segregation of the nucleolus in topoisomerase mutants and nuclear division mutants of S. cerevisiae was also investigated. In cdc14 mutants which arrest at late anaphase, the vast majority of the DNA is separated, but the nucleolar antigens remain extended between the mother and daughter cells. Thus, the CDC14 gene of S. cerevisiae appears to be important for the separation of the nucleolus at mitosis.     

Septins have a dual role in controlling mitotic exit in budding yeast

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the spindle position checkpoint ensures that cells do not exit mitosis until the mitotic spindle moves into the mother/bud neck and thus guarantees that each cell receives one nucleus [1-6]. Mitotic exit is controlled by the small G protein Tem1p. Tem1p and its GTPase activating protein (GAP) Bub2p/Bfa1p are located on the daughter-bound spindle pole body. The GEF Lte1p is located in the bud. This segregation helps keep Tem1p in its inactive GDP state until the spindle enters the neck. However, the checkpoint functions without Lte1p and apparently senses cytoplasmic microtubules in the mother/bud neck [7-9]. To investigate this mechanism, we examined mutants defective for septins, which compose a ring at the neck [10]. We found that the septin mutants sep7Delta and cdc10Delta are defective in the checkpoint. When movement of the spindle into the neck was delayed, mitotic exit occurred, inappropriately leaving both nuclei in the mother. In sep7Delta and cdc10Delta mutants, Lte1p is mislocalized to the mother. In sep7Delta, but not cdc10Delta, mutants, inappropriate mitotic exit depends on Lte1p. These results suggest that septins serve as a diffusion barrier for Lte1p, and that Cdc10p is needed for the septin ring to serve as a scaffold for a putative microtubule sensor.     

Differential function and expression of Saccharomyces cerevisiae B-type cyclins in mitosis and meiosis.

We have studied the patterns of expression of four B-type cyclins (Clbs), Clb1, Clb2, Clb3, and Clb4, and their ability to activate p34cdc28 during the mitotic and meiotic cell cycles of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. During the mitotic cell cycle, Clb3 and Clb4 were expressed and induced a kinase activity in association with p34cdc28 from early S phase up to mitosis. On the other hand, Clb1 and Clb2 were expressed and activated p34cdc28 later in the mitotic cell cycle, starting in late S phase and continuing up to mitosis. The pattern of expression of Clb3 and Clb4 suggests a possible role in the regulation of DNA replication as well as mitosis. Clb1 and Clb2, whose pattern of expression is similar to that of other known Clbs, are likely to have a role predominantly in the regulation of M phase. During the meiotic cell cycle, Clb1, Clb3, and Clb4 were expressed and induced a p34cdc28-associated kinase activity just before the first meiotic division. The fact that Clb3 and Clb4 were not synthesized earlier, in S phase, suggests that these cyclins, which probably have a role in S phase during the mitotic cell cycle, are not implicated in premeiotic S phase. Clb2, the primary mitotic cyclin in S. cerevisiae, was not detectable during meiosis. Sporulation experiments on strains deleted for one, two, or three Clbs indicate, in agreement with the biochemical data, that Clb1 is the primary cyclin for the regulation of meiosis, while Clb2 is not involved at all.     

Protein synthesis requirements for nuclear division, cytokinesis, and cell separation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Protein synthesis inhibitors have often been used to identify regulatory steps in cell division. We used cell division cycle mutants of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and two chemical inhibitors of translation to investigate the requirements for protein synthesis for completing landmark events after the G1 phase of the cell cycle. We show, using cdc2, cdc6, cdc7, cdc8, cdc17 (38 degrees C), and cdc21 (also named tmp1) mutants, that cells arrested in S phase complete DNA synthesis but cannot complete nuclear division if protein synthesis is inhibited. In contrast, we show, using cdc16, cdc17 (36 degrees C), cdc20, cdc23, and nocodazole treatment, that cells that arrest in the G2 stage complete nuclear division in the absence of protein synthesis. Protein synthesis is required late in the cell cycle to complete cytokinesis and cell separation. These studies show that there are requirements for protein synthesis in the cell cycle, after G1, that are restricted to two discrete intervals.     

A candidate protein kinase C gene, PKC1, is required for the S. cerevisiae cell cycle

Probes derived from cDNAs encoding isozymes of rat protein kinase C (PKC) were used to screen the genome of the budding yeast S. cerevisiae. A single gene (PKC1) was isolated that encodes a putative protein kinase closely related to the alpha, beta, and gamma subspecies of mammalian PKC. Deletion of PKC1 resulted in recessive lethality. Cells depleted of the PKC1 gene product displayed a uniform phenotype, a characteristic of cell division cycle (cdc) mutants, and arrested cell division at a point subsequent to DNA replication, but prior to mitosis. Unlike most cdc mutants, which continue to grow in the absence of cell division, PKC1-depleted cells arrested growth with small buds. PKC1 may regulate a previously unrecognized checkpoint in the cell cycle.     

DNA repair mutants defining G2 checkpoint pathways in Schizosaccharomyces pombe.

We have tested mutants corresponding to 20 DNA repair genes of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe for their ability to arrest in G2 after DNA damage. Of the mutants tested, four are profoundly defective in this damage dependent G2 arrest. In addition, these four mutants are highly sensitive to a transient inhibition of DNA synthesis by hydroxyurea. This suggests that the pathway responsible for the recognition of DNA damage and the subsequent mitotic arrest, shares many functions with the mechanism that controls the dependency of mitosis on the completion of S phase. The phenotype of these checkpoint rad mutants in wee mutant backgrounds indicate that the G2 arrest response is mediated either through, or in parallel with, the activity of the cdc2 gene product.     

CDC44: a putative nucleotide-binding protein required for cell cycle progression that has homology to subunits of replication factor C.

To investigate the means by which a cell regulates the progression of the mitotic cell cycle, we characterized cdc44, a mutation that causes Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells to arrest before mitosis. CDC44 encodes a 96-kDa basic protein with significant homology to a human protein that binds DNA (PO-GA) and to three subunits of human replication factor C (also called activator 1). The hypothesis that Cdc44p is involved in DNA metabolism is supported by the observations that (i) levels of mitotic recombination suggest elevated rates of DNA damage in cdc44 mutants and (ii) the cell cycle arrest observed in cdc44 mutants is alleviated by the DNA damage checkpoint mutations rad9, mec1, and mec2. The predicted amino acid sequence of Cdc44p contains GTPase consensus sites, and mutations in these regions cause a conditional cell cycle arrest. Taken together, these observations suggest that the essential CDC44 gene may encode the large subunit of yeast replication factor C.     

Geminin is bound to chromatin in G2/M phase to promote proper cytokinesis

Previous studies suggested that geminin plays a vital role in both origin assembly and DNA re-replication during S-phase; however, no data to support a role for geminin in G2/M cells have been described. Here it is shown that in G2/M-phase, geminin participates in the promotion of proper cytokinesis. This claim can be supported through a series of observations. First, geminin in G2/M is loaded onto chromatin after it is tyrosine phosphorylated. It is unlike S-phase geminin that resides in the nuclear soluble fraction, where it is exclusively S/T phosphorylated. Secondly, on chromatin, geminin gets S/T phosphorylated in late G1; this modification causes the release of geminin from the chromatin. Cyclins bind and phosphorylate geminin in a sequential, cell cycle-dependent manner. These modifications correlated well with geminin departure from the chromatin. This suggests that cyclin functions to either release geminin from chromatin or at least keep it at bay until late S-phase. Thirdly, depletion of geminin from a diploid mammary epithelial cell line (HME) causes cells to arrest in late G2/M-phase. Massive serine-10 phosphorylated histone H3 staining and survivin localization to mid-body were observed; this suggests that they could be arrested in either mitosis or at cytokinesis. Finally, while in the absence of geminin, cyclin B1, chk1 and cdc7 are all over expressed. This paper will demonstrate that only cdc7 is important in maintaining the cytokinesis arrest in the absence of geminin. Only double depletion of geminin and cdc7 induce apoptosis. Our results taken together show, for the first time, that phosphorylation-induction activates oscillation of geminin between both nuclear soluble and chromatin compartments. Chromatin-bound geminin species functions to initiate or maintain proper cytokineses. In the absence of geminin, cells arrest in cytokinesis; this defines a novel checkpoint, monitored by cdc7, rather than cyclin B1 or chk1.     

Cell cycle regulation of the yeast Cdc7 protein kinase by association with the Dbf4 protein.

Yeast Cdc7 protein kinase and Dbf4 protein are both required for the initiation of DNA replication at the G1/S phase boundary of the mitotic cell cycle. Cdc7 kinase function is stage-specific in the cell cycle, but total Cdc7 protein levels remained unchanged. Therefore, regulation of Cdc7 function appears to be the result of posttranslational modification. In this study, we have attempted to elucidate the mechanism responsible for achieving this specific execution point of Cdc7. Cdc7 kinase activity was shown to be maximal at the G1/S boundary by using either cultures synchronized with alpha factor or Cdc- mutants or with inhibitors of DNA synthesis or mitosis. Therefore, Cdc7 kinase is regulated by a posttranslational mechanism that ensures maximal Cdc7 activity at the G1/S boundary, which is consistent with Cdc7 function in the cell cycle. This cell cycle-dependent regulation could be the result of association with the Dbf4 protein. In this study, the Dbf4 protein was shown to be required for Cdc7 kinase activity in that Cdc7 kinase activity is thermolabile in vitro when extracts prepared from a temperature-sensitive dbf4 mutant grown under permissive conditions are used. In vitro reconstitution assays, in addition to employment of the two-hybrid system for protein-protein interactions, have demonstrated that the Cdc7 and Dbf4 proteins interact both in vitro and in vivo. A suppressor mutation, bob1-1, which can bypass deletion mutations in both cdc7 and dbf4 was isolated. However, the bob1-1 mutation cannot bypass all events in G1 phase because it fails to suppress temperature-sensitive cdc4 or cdc28 mutations. This indicates that the Cdc7 and Dbf4 proteins act at a common point in the cell cycle. Therefore, because of the common point of function for the two proteins and the fact that the Dbf4 protein is essential for Cdc7 function, we propose that Dbf4 may represent a cyclin-like molecule specific for the activation of Cdc7 kinase.     

A novel mutant allele of Schizosaccharomyces pombe rad26 defective in monitoring S-phase progression to prevent premature mitosis.

A semipermissive growth condition was defined for a Schizosaccharomyces pombe strain carrying a thermosensitive allele of DNA polymerase delta (pol delta ts03). Under this condition, DNA polymerase delta is semidisabled and causes a delay in S-phase progression. Using a genetic strategy, we have isolated a panel of mutants that enter premature mitosis when DNA replication is incomplete but which are not defective for arrest in G2/M following DNA damage. We characterized the aya14 mutant, which enters premature mitosis when S phase is arrested by genetic or chemical means. However, this mutant is sensitive to neither UV nor gamma irradiation. Two genomic clones, rad26+ and cds1+, were found to suppress the hydroxyurea sensitivity of the aya14 mutant. Genetic analysis indicates that aya14 is a novel allele of the cell cycle checkpoint gene rad26+, which we have named rad26.a14. cds1+ is a suppressor which suppresses the S-phase feedback control defect of rad26.a14 when S phase is inhibited by either hydroxyurea or cdc22, but it does not suppress the defect when S phase is arrested by a mutant DNA polymerase. Analyses of rad26.a14 in a variety of cdc mutant backgrounds indicate that strains containing rad26.a14 bypass S-phase arrest but not G1 or late S/G2 arrest. A model of how Rad26 monitors S-phase progression to maintain the dependency of cell cycle events and coordinates with other rad/hus checkpoint gene products in responding to radiation damage is proposed.     

Cdc55p, the B-type regulatory subunit of protein phosphatase 2A, has multiple functions in mitosis and is required for the kinetochore/spindle checkpoint in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae, like most eucaryotic cells, can prevent the onset of anaphase until chromosomes are properly aligned on the mitotic spindle. We determined that Cdc55p (regulatory B subunit of protein phosphatase 2A [PP2A]) is required for the kinetochore/spindle checkpoint regulatory pathway in yeast. ctf13 cdc55 double mutants could not maintain a ctf13-induced mitotic delay, as determined by antitubulin staining and levels of histone H1 kinase activity. In addition, cdc55::LEU2 mutants and tpd3::LEU2 mutants (regulatory A subunit of PP2A) were nocodazole sensitive and exhibited the phenotypes of previously identified kinetochore/spindle checkpoint mutants. Inactivating CDC55 did not simply bypass the arrest that results from inhibiting ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis because cdc16-1 cdc55::LEU2 and cdc23-1 cdc55::LEU2 double mutants arrested normally at elevated temperatures. CDC55 is specific for the kinetochore/spindle checkpoint because cdc55 mutants showed normal sensitivity to gamma radiation and hydroxyurea. The conditional lethality and the abnormal cellular morphogenesis of cdc55::LEU2 were suppressed by cdc28F19, suggesting that the cdc55 phenotypes are dependent on the phosphorylation state of Cdc28p. In contrast, the nocodazole sensitivity of cdc55::LEU2 was not suppressed by cdc28F19. Therefore, the mitotic checkpoint activity of CDC55 (and TPD3) is independent of regulated phosphorylation of Cdc28p. Finally, cdc55::LEU2 suppresses the temperature sensitivity of cdc20-1, suggesting additional roles for CDC55 in mitosis.     

A pre-start checkpoint preventing mitosis in fission yeast acts independently of p34cdc2 tyrosine phosphorylation.

We have monitored the tyrosine (Y15) phosphorylated and dephosphorylated forms of p34cdc2 from Schizosaccharomyces pombe as cells proceed through the cell cycle. Y15 is dephosphorylated in G1 before start and becomes phosphorylated only after cells pass start and enter late G1. This transition is associated with a switch from one checkpoint which restrains mitosis in pre-start G1, by a mechanism independent from Y15 phosphorylation, to a second checkpoint acting post-start during late G1 and S phase operating through Y15 phosphorylation. The pre-start checkpoint may act by preventing formation of the p34cdc2/p56cdc13 complex. The complex between Y15-phosphorylated p34cdc2 and p56cdc13 accumulates during S phase and G2, but the level generated is not solely dependent on the amount of p34cdc2 and p56cdc13 present in the cell. The extent of p56cdc13 breakdown at the end of mitosis may be determined by the amount complexed with p34cdc2. We have also shown that an insoluble form of p34cdc2 is associated with the progression of the cell through late G1 into S phase.     

The Pds1 anaphase inhibitor and Mec1 kinase define distinct checkpoints coupling S phase with mitosis in budding yeast

In most eukaryotic cells, DNA replication is confined to S phase of the cell cycle [1]. During this interval, S-phase checkpoint controls restrain mitosis until replication is complete [2]. In budding yeast, the anaphase inhibitor Pds1p has been associated with the checkpoint arrest of mitosis when DNA is damaged or when mitotic spindles have formed aberrantly [3] [4], but not when DNA replication is blocked with hydroxyurea (HU). Previous studies have implicated the protein kinase Mec1p in S-phase checkpoint control [5]. Unlike mec1 mutants, pds1 mutants efficiently inhibit anaphase when replication is blocked. This does not, however, exclude an essential S-phase checkpoint function of Pds1 beyond the early S-phase arrest point of a HU block. Here, we show that Pds1p is an essential component of a previously unsuspected checkpoint control system that couples the completion of S phase with mitosis. Further, the S-phase checkpoint comprises at least two distinct pathways. A Mec1p-dependent pathway operates early in S phase, but a Pds1p-dependent pathway becomes essential part way through S phase.     

Dephosphorylation of threonine 169 of Cdc28 is not required for exit from mitosis but may be necessary for start in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Entry into mitosis requires activation of cdc2 kinase brought on by its association with cyclin B, phosphorylation of the conserved threonine (Thr-167 in Schizosaccharomyces pombe) in the T loop, and dephosphorylation of the tyrosine residue at position 15. Exit from mitosis, on the other hand, is induced by inactivation of cdc2 activity via cyclin destruction. It has been suggested that in addition to cyclin degradation, dephosphorylation of Thr-167 may also be required for exit from the M phase. Here we show that Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells expressing cdc28-E169 (a CDC28 allele in which the equivalent threonine, Thr-169, has been replaced by glutamic acid) are able to degrade mitotic cyclin Clb2, inactivate the Cdc28/Clb2 kinase, and disassemble the anaphase spindles, suggesting that they exit mitosis normally. The cdc28-E169 allele is active with respect to its mitotic functions, since it complements the mitosis-defective cdc28-1N allele. Whereas replacement of Thr-169 with serine affects neither Start nor the mitotic activity of Cdc28, replacement with glutamic acid or alanine renders Cdc28 inactive for Start-related functions. Coimmunoprecipitation experiments show that although Cdc28-E169 associates with mitotic cyclin Clb2, it fails to associate with the G1 cyclin Cln2. Thus, an unmodified threonine at position 169 in Cdc28 is important for interaction with G1 cyclins. We propose that in S. cerevisiae, dephosphorylation of Thr-169 is not required for exit from mitosis but may be necessary for commitment to the subsequent division cycle.