Stimulation of dehydrogenase synthesis by cadmium in a cadmium-resistant strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The activity of dehydrogenase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae was estimated by reduction of 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride. By the adaptation of yeast to cadmium, the high activity of dehydrogenase was observed. Furthermore, the activity of dehydrogenase in Cd-resistant cells was increased by growing in medium containing CdSO₄. However, the activity of dehydrogenase was inhibited by the addition of CdSO₄ to the reaction mixture. The activity of dehydrogenase in Cd-sensitive cells was increased slightly by incubation with low concentrations of CdSO₄.High activity of dehydrogenase in Cd-resistant cells was completely negated by the addition of cycloheximide to the incubation medium. The increase of dehydrogenase activity is due partly to de novo synthesis of protein.