ABSTRACT Mutations in the SPT3 gene were isolated as one class of suppressors of Ty and solo δ insertion mutations in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Previous work has shown that null mutations in SPT3 abolish the normal Ty δ-δ transcript; instead, a transcript that initiates 800 bases farther downstream is made, suggesting that SPT3 is required for transcription initiation in δ sequences. We have selected for new spt mutations and have screened for those with the unique suppression pattern of spt3 mutations with respect to two insertion mutations. Our selection and screen has identified two additional genes, SPT7 and SPT8, that are also required for transcription initiation in δ sequences. We show that mutations in SPT7 or SPT8 result in the same alteration of Ty transcription as do mutations in SPT3. In addition, mutations in all three genes cause a sporulation defect. By assay of a Ty-lacZ fusion we have shown that spt3, spt7 and spt8 mutations reduce transcription from a δ sequence by 10-25-fold. Finally, we show that SPT3 mRNA levels are unaffected in either spt7 or spt8 mutants, suggesting that these two genes do not regulate transcription of SPT3.
SPT16 was previously identified as a high-copy-number suppressor of delta insertion mutations in the 5' regions of the HIS4 and LYS2 genes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We have constructed null mutations in the SPT16 gene and have demonstrated that it is essential for growth. Temperature-sensitive-lethality spt16 alleles have been isolated and shown to be pleiotropic; at a temperature permissive for growth, spt16 mutations suppress delta insertion mutations, a deletion of the SUC2 upstream activating sequence, and mutations in trans-acting genes required for both SUC2 and Ty expression. In addition, SPT16 is identical to CDC68, a gene previously shown to be required for passage through the cell cycle control point START. However, at least some transcriptional effects caused by spt16 mutations are independent of arrest at START. These results and those in the accompanying paper (A. Rowley, R. A. Singer, and G. C. Johnston, Mol. Cell. Biol. 11:5718-5726, 1991) indicate that SPT16/CDC68 is required for normal transcription of many loci in S. cerevisiae.
Mutations in the SPT5 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae were isolated previously as suppressors of delta insertion mutations at HIS4 and LYS2. In this study we have shown that spt5 mutations suppress the his4-912 delta and lys2-128 delta alleles by altering transcription. We cloned the SPT5 gene and found that either an increase or a decrease in the copy number of the wild-type SPT5 gene caused an Spt- phenotype. Construction and analysis of an spt5 null mutation demonstrated that SPT5 is essential for growth, suggesting that SPT5 may be required for normal transcription of a large number of genes. The SPT5 DNA sequence was determined; it predicted a 116-kDa protein with an extremely acidic amino terminus and a novel six-amino-acid repeat at the carboxy terminus (consensus = S-T/A-W-G-G-A/Q). By indirect immunofluorescence microscopy we showed that a bifunctional SPT5-beta-galactosidase protein was located in the yeast nucleus. This molecular analysis of the SPT5 gene revealed a number of interesting similarities to the previously characterized SPT6 gene of S. cerevisiae. These results suggest that SPT5 and SPT6 act in a related fashion to influence essential transcriptional processes in S. cerevisiae.
SPT16 was previously identified as a high-copy-number suppressor of delta insertion mutations in the 5' regions of the HIS4 and LYS2 genes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We have constructed null mutations in the SPT16 gene and have demonstrated that it is essential for growth. Temperature-sensitive-lethality spt16 alleles have been isolated and shown to be pleiotropic; at a temperature permissive for growth, spt16 mutations suppress delta insertion mutations, a deletion of the SUC2 upstream activating sequence, and mutations in trans-acting genes required for both SUC2 and Ty expression. In addition, SPT16 is identical to CDC68, a gene previously shown to be required for passage through the cell cycle control point START. However, at least some transcriptional effects caused by spt16 mutations are independent of arrest at START. These results and those in the accompanying paper (A. Rowley, R. A. Singer, and G. C. Johnston, Mol. Cell. Biol. 11:5718-5726, 1991) indicate that SPT16/CDC68 is required for normal transcription of many loci in S. cerevisiae.
Abstract Based on environmental cues, the nervous system of Caenorhabditis ekgans regulates formation of the dauer larva, an alternative larval form specialized for long-term survival under harsh conditions. Mutations that cause constitutive or defective dauer formation (Daf-c or Daf-d) have been identified and the genes ordered in a branched pathway. Most Daf-c mutations also affect recovery from the dauer stage. The semidominant mutation daf-28(sa191) is Daf-c but has no apparent effect on dauer recovery. We use this unique aspect of daf28(sal91) to characterize the effects of several Daf-d and synthetic Daf-c mutations on dauer recovery. We present double mutant analysis that indicates that daf-28(saI91) acts at a novel point downstream in the genetic pathway for dauer formation. We also show that daf-28(sa191) causes a modest increase (12-13%) in life span. The phenotypes and genetic interactions of daf-28(sa191) are most similar to those of daf-2 and daf-23 mutations, which also cause a dramatic increase in life span. We present mapping and complementation data that suggest that daf-23 is the same gene as age-I, identified previously by mutations that extend life span. We find that age-l alleles are also Daf-c at 27°.
Abstract In Caenorhabditis elegans, formation of the developmentally arrested dauer larva is induced by high levels of a constitutively secreted pheromone. Synergy between two groups of incompletely penetrant dauer-constitutive (Daf-c) mutations has recently led to a proposal that these two groups of genes are partially redundant and function in two parallel pathways that regulate dauer formation. A possible weakness in this reasoning is that the mutations used to identify the synergy were specifically obtained as incompletely penetrant mutations. Here we use screens to identify new Daf-c alleles without any requirement for partial penetrance. Nevertheless, 22 of the 25 new mutations are incompletely penetrant mutations in 6 previously identified genes. Among these are mutations in daf-8 and daf-19, genes for which only one mutation had been previously identified. Also included in this group are three daf-1 alleles that do not exhibit the maternal rescue characteristic of other daf-1 alleles. Two of the 25 new mutations are fully penetrant and are alleles of daf-2, the one gene in which a fully penetrant mutation had been found earlier. Finally, one of the 25 new mutations is semidominant, temperature-sensitive, and identifies a new gene, daf-28. The results demonstrate that an incompletely penetrant Daf-c phenotype is characteristic of mutations in most Daf-c genes other than daf-2. This finding strengthens the hypothesis that a branched genetic pathway controls dauer formation.
