Ethanol stress stimulates the Ca2+-mediated calcineurin/Crz1 pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
Environmental stimuli elicit a stress response, which helps to maintain cell survival. In budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, environmental cues can activate calcineurin, a highly conserved Ca2+-- and calmodulin-dependent protein phosphatase. Calcineurin dephosphorylates the transcription factor Crz1, leading to accumulation of Crz1 in the nuclei and expression of stress responsive genes under the control of a calcineurin-dependent response element (CDRE). Ethanol is the final product of sugar fermentation by yeast, and thus a frequently encountered yeast stressor. However, adaptation of yeast to ethanol stress is poorly understood. In this study, we show that ethanol stimulates calcineurin-dependent nuclear localization of Crz1 and CDRE-dependent gene expression. Moreover, cells in which CRZ1 is deleted exhibit defective adaptation to ethanol stress, while a multicopy plasmid of CRZ1 confers an increased level of adaptive stress tolerance to ethanol. Taken together, the results indicate that ethanol activates the calcineurin/Crz1 pathway and that CRZ1 is crucial for cell survival under ethanol-induced stress.
Araki
Yoshio
Y
National Research Institute of Brewing, 3-7-1, Kagamiyama, Higashihiroshima 739-0046, Japan.
Wu
Hong
H
Kitagaki
Hiroshi
H
Akao
Takeshi
T
Takagi
Hiroshi
H
Shimoi
Hitoshi
H
D019703:Calcineurin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D020013:Calcium Signaling; D002241:Carbohydrates; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000737:chemistry; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D000431:Ethanol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005285:Fermentation; D015966:Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D008954:Models, Biological; D020218:Response Elements; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000378:metabolism*; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D013997:Time Factors; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D001616:beta-Galactosidase / Q000378:metabolism
C109868:CRZ1 protein, S cerevisiae; D002241:Carbohydrates; D017931:DNA Primers; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D000431:Ethanol; D019703:Calcineurin; D001616:beta-Galactosidase; D002118:Calcium