title: Mutant isolation of mouse DNA topoisomerase II alpha in yeast.
abstract: For characterizing in vivo functions of a mammalian protein, it is informative to obtain conditional mutations and apply them to the mouse genetic system. However, the isolation of conditional mutations has been quite difficult in cultured cells. We report here that functional expression of a heterologous mammalian gene in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae provides a system for isolating mutated genes. We found that the cloned mouse TOP2 alpha cDNA, which encodes mouse DNA topoisomerase II (topo II) alpha, could rescue the lethal phenotype caused by yeast top2 null mutation. In order to generate and select temperature-sensitive mouse topo II alpha, an expression plasmid was mutagenized in vitro and was transformed, using the plasmid shuffling method, into the yeast strain, in which the endogenous TOP2 gene had been disrupted. We observed that one of such clone of yeast cells harboring a mutagenized mouse TOP2 alpha showed temperature-sensitive growth. Enzymatic assays and sequencing analysis revealed that this phenotype was caused by the thermosensitive nature of the mutant mouse protein, which has isoleucine at amino acid 961 instead of threonine. Therefore we have isolated the first conditional mutation in the mouse TOP2 alpha.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Adachi
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kikuchi
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; D001483:Base Sequence; D004250:DNA Topoisomerases, Type II / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D005690:Galactose / Q000494:pharmacology; D015870:Gene Expression; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D006358:Hot Temperature; D007527:Isoenzymes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016296:Mutagenesis; D009154:Mutation; D010957:Plasmids; D000075223:Poly-ADP-Ribose Binding Proteins; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development
chemical_list: D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D007527:Isoenzymes; D000075223:Poly-ADP-Ribose Binding Proteins; D004250:DNA Topoisomerases, Type II; C000618812:Top2a protein, mouse; D005690:Galactose