Zinc Cluster Proteins Research Articles

Sequence-specific binding by Aspergillus nidulans AflR, a C6 zinc cluster protein regulating mycotoxin biosynthesis.

The Aspergillus nidulans aflR gene is found within a 60 kb gene cluster that includes approximately 24 other genes that putatively function in the production of the aflatoxin-related mycotoxin sterigmatocystin. Previous work showed that AflR is a C6 zinc binuclear cluster protein that is conserved across Aspergillus spp. and functions as a pathway-specific transcription factor in activating expression of other cluster genes. In this report, we demonstrate that A. nidulans AflR (AnAflR) is a 45kDa protein that binds to the palindromic sequence 5'-TCG(N5)CGA-3' found in the promoter regions of several aflatoxin and sterigmatocystin cluster genes (stc genes). The in vivo relevance of this AnAflR binding site was assessed by examining the contribution of the three TCG(N5)CGA elements in the 1.1 kb promoter region of stcU using gene fusions with the bacterial uidA gene encoding beta-glucuronidase (GUS). By mutating one, two or all three of the AnAflR-binding elements and examining GUS activity in wild-type aflR or delta aflR A. nidulans strains, we found that stc gene activation required both AnAflR and at least one TCG(N5)CGA AflR binding site.

The fluffy gene of Neurospora crassa encodes a Gal4p-type C6 zinc cluster protein required for conidial development.

Neurospora crassa fluffy (fl) mutants are unable to produce macroconidia. We cloned the fl gene to determine its role in regulating conidiation. A cosmid clone containing fl was identified by complementation. The sequence of fl revealed that it encodes a Gal4p-type C6 zinc cluster protein with greatest similarity to the N. crassa NIT4 protein that regulates genes required for nitrate utilization. Analysis of several fl mutant alleles demonstrated that null mutants are blocked in the budding phase of development required to produce conidiophores. fl mRNA is transiently induced just prior to the developmental commitment to budding growth. This timing of fl expression is consistent with a role for FL protein in activation of the previously characterized conidiation-specific (con) genes, con-6 and con-10. These data suggest that FL acts as a developmentally regulated transcription factor required for conidiophore morphogenesis.

The Zinc Binuclear Cluster Activator AlcR Is Able to Bind to Single Sites but Requires Multiple Repeated Sites for Synergistic Activation of the alcA Gene in Aspergillus nidulans

The alcA gene which is part of the recently identified ethanol regulon, is one of the most strongly inducible genes in Aspergillus nidulans. Its transcriptional activation is mediated by the AlcR transactivator which contains a DNA-binding domain belonging to the C6 zinc binuclear cluster family. AlcR differs from the other members of this family by several features, the most striking characteristic being its binding to both symmetric and asymmetric DNA sites with the same apparent affinity. However, AlcR is also able to bind to a single site with high affinity, suggesting that unlike the other C6 proteins, AlcR binds as a monomer. In this report, we show that AlcR targets, to be functional in vivo, have to be organized as inverted or direct repeats. In addition, we show a strong synergistic activation of alcA transcription in which the number and the position of the AlcR-binding sites are crucial. The fact that the AlcR unit for in vitro binding is a single site whereas the in vivo functional unit is a repeat opens the question of the mechanism of the strong alcA transactivation. These results show that AlcR displays both in vitro and in vivo a new range of binding specificity and provides a novel example in the C6 zinc cluster protein family.

NMR analysis of CYP1(HAP1) DNA binding domain-CYC1 upstream activation sequence interactions: recognition of a CGG trinucleotide and of an additional thymine 5 bp downstream by the zinc cluster and the N-terminal extremity of the protein.

The DNA binding domain of the yeast transcriptional activator CYP1(HAP1) contains a zinc-cluster structure. The structures of the DNA binding domain-DNA complexes of two other zinc-cluster proteins (GAL4 and PPR1) have been studied by X-ray crystallography. Their binding domains present, besides the zinc cluster, a short linker peptide and a dimerization element. They recognize, as homodimers, two rotationally symmetric CGG trinucleotides, the linker peptide and the dimerization element playing a crucial role in binding specificity. Surprisingly, CYP1 recognizes degenerate forms of a direct repeat, CGGnnnTAnCGGnnnTA, and the role of its linker is under discussion. To better understand the binding specificity of CYP1, we have studied, by NMR, the interaction between the CYP1(55-126) peptide and two DNA fragments derived from the CYC1 upstream activation sequence 1B. Our data indicate that CYP1(55-126) interacts with a CGG and with a thymine 5 bp downstream. The CGG trinucleotide is recognized by the zinc cluster in the major groove, as for GAL4 and PPR1, and the thymine is bound in the minor groove by the N-terminal region, which possesses a basic stretch of arginyl and lysyl residues. This suggests that the CYP1(55-126) N-terminal region could play a role in the affinity and/or specificity of the interaction with its DNA targets, in contrast to GAL4 and PPR1.

Evidence for induced DNA bending by the yeast zinc cluster protein PUT3

We employed helical phasing analysis to study DNA conformation in the absence and presence of PUT3, a member of the Zn 2 Cys 6 binuclear cluster family of transcription factors. Our data indicate that the PUT3 target site UAS 10 does not bend appreciably in the absence of PUT3(1–100), but bends towards the major groove by approximately 46 degrees in the presence of PUT3(1–100). We employed helical phasing analysis to study DNA conformation in the absence and presence of PUT3, a member of the Zn 2 Cys 6 binuclear cluster family of transcription factors. Our data indicate that the PUT3 UAS 10 target site does not bend appreximately 46 degrees in the presence of PUT3(1–100).

Glucose derepression of gluconeogenic enzymes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae correlates with phosphorylation of the gene activator Cat8p.

The Cat8p zinc cluster protein is essential for growth of Saccharomyces cerevisiae with nonfermentable carbon sources. Expression of the CAT8 gene is subject to glucose repression mainly caused by Mig1p. Unexpectedly, the deletion of the Mig1p-binding motif within the CAT8 promoter did not increase CAT8 transcription; moreover, it resulted in a loss of CAT8 promoter activation. Insertion experiments with a promoter test plasmid confirmed that this regulatory 20-bp element influences glucose repression and derepression as well. This finding suggests an upstream activating function of this promoter region, which is Mig1p independent, as delta mig1 mutants are still able to derepress the CAT8 promoter. No other putative binding sites such as a Hap2/3/4/5p site and an Abf1p consensus site were functional with respect to glucose-regulated CAT8 expression. Fusions of Cat8p with the Gal4p DNA-binding domain mediated transcriptional activation. This activation capacity was still carbon source regulated and depended on the Cat1p (Snf1p) protein kinase, which indicated that Cat8p needs posttranslational modification to reveal its gene-activating function. Indeed, Western blot analysis on sodium dodecyl sulfate-gels revealed a single band (Cat8pI) with crude extracts from glucose-grown cells, whereas three bands (Cat8pI, -II, and -III) were identified in derepressed cells. Derepression-specific Cat8pII and -III resulted from differential phosphorylation, as shown by phosphatase treatment. Only the most extensively phosphorylated modification (Cat8pIII) depended on the Cat1p (Snf1p) kinase, indicating that another protein kinase is responsible for modification form Cat8pII. The occurrence of Cat8pIII was strongly correlated with the derepression of gluconeogenic enzymes (phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase and fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase) and gluconeogenic PCK1 mRNA. Furthermore, glucose triggered the dephosphorylation of Cat8pIII, but this did not depend on the Glc7p (Cid1p) phosphatase previously described as being involved in invertase repression. These results confirm our current model that glucose derepression of gluconeogenic genes needs Cat8p phosphorylation and additionally show that a still unknown transcriptional activator is also involved.

Two different repressors collaborate to restrict expression of the yeast glucose transporter genes HXT2 and HXT4 to low levels of glucose.

Transcription of the yeast HXT2 and HXT4 genes, which encode glucose transporters, is induced only by low levels of glucose. This low-glucose-induced expression is mediated by two independent repression mechanisms: in the absence of glucose, transcription of both genes is prevented by Rgt1p, a C6 zinc cluster protein; at high levels of glucose, expression of HXT2 and HXT4 is repressed by Mig1p. Only at low glucose concentrations are both repressors inactive, leading to a 10- to 20-fold induction of gene expression. Mig1p and Rgt1p act directly on HXT2 and HXT4 by binding to their promoters. This transcriptional regulation is physiologically very important to the yeast cell because it causes these glucose transporters to be expressed only in low-glucose media, in which they are required for growth.

The C6 zinc cluster dictates asymmetric binding by HAP1.

Unlike other C6 zinc cluster proteins such as GAL4 and PPR1, HAP1 binds selectively to asymmetric DNA sites containing a direct repeat of two CGG triplets. Here, we show that the HAP1 zinc cluster is solely responsible for asymmetric binding by HAP1. An asymmetric interaction between two zinc clusters of a HAP1 dimer must position the zinc clusters in a directly repeated orientation, and enable them to recognize two CGG triplets in a direct repeat. Further, our data suggest that this asymmetric interaction acts cooperatively with the interaction between dimerization elements to promote HAP1 dimerization, and locks HAP1-DNA complexes in a stable, dimeric conformation.

Mutations in target DNA elements of yeast HAP1 modulate its transcriptional activity without affecting DNA binding.

The yeast zinc cluster protein HAP1, a member of the GAL4 family, is a transcriptional activator that binds as a homodimer to target DNA sequences. These targets include the upstream activating sequences of the CYC1 and CYC7 genes, which have no obvious sequence similarity. Even though both sites have the same affinity for HAP1, activation differs at these two sites, even when the sequences are placed in an identical promoter context. In addition, mutants of HAP1 that can bind to both sites but are specifically transcriptionally inactive at CYC7 have been previously isolated. In order to identify nucleotides that are responsible for this differential activity, we have performed random and site-directed mutagenesis of these target sites and assayed their binding to HAP1 in vitro and their activity in vivo in reporter plasmids. Our results show that HAP1 binding sites are degenerate forms of the direct repeat CGG N3 TA N CGG N3 TA. Moreover, we show that activity of HAP1 mutants defective for activation of the CYC7gene is restored by specific mutations in the CYC7 binding site. Conversely, other mutations of the target sites prevent activation by HAP1, without interfering with DNA binding. The results suggest that the sequence of the target sites influences the conformation and, hence, the activity of DNA-bound HAP1.

Isolation and analysis of the yeast TEA1 gene, which encodes a zinc cluster Ty enhancer-binding protein.

A genetic screen for mutants that affect the activity of internal regulatory sequences of Ty retrotransposons led to the identification of a new gene encoding a DNA-binding protein that interacts with the downstream enhancer-like region of Ty1 elements. The TEA1 (Ty enhancer activator) gene sequence predicts a protein of 86.9 kDa whose N terminus contains a zinc cluster and dimerization motif typical of the Gal4-type family of DNA-binding proteins. The C terminus encodes an acidic domain with a net negative charge of -10 and the ability to mediate transcriptional activation. Like other zinc cluster proteins, purified Tea1 was found to bind to a partially palindromic CGGNxCCG repeat motif located in the Ty1 enhancer region. The Ty1 Tea1 binding site has a spacing of 10 and is located near binding sites for the DNA-binding proteins Rap1 and Mcm1. Analysis of the phenotype of tea1 deletion mutants confirmed that the TEA1 gene is required for activation from the internal Ty1 enhancer characterized in this study and makes a modest contribution to normal Ty1 levels in the cell. Hence, Tea1, like Rap1, is a member of a small family of downstream activators in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Further analysis of the Tea1 protein and its interactions may provide insight into the mechanism of downstream activation in yeast cells.

CAT8, a new zinc cluster-encoding gene necessary for derepression of gluconeogenic enzymes in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The expression of gluconeogenic fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (encoded by the FBP1 gene) depends on the carbon source. Analysis of the FBP1 promoter revealed two upstream activating elements, UAS1FBP1 and UAS2FBP1, which confer carbon source-dependent regulation on a heterologous reporter gene. On glucose media neither element was activated, whereas after transfer to ethanol a 100-fold derepression was observed. This gene activation depended on the previously identified derepression genes CAT1 (SNF1) (encoding a protein kinase) and CAT3 (SNF4) (probably encoding a subunit of Cat1p [Snf1p]). Screening for mutations specifically involved in UAS1FBP1 derepression revealed the new recessive derepression mutation cat8. The cat8 mutants also failed to derepress UAS2FBP1, and these mutants were unable to grow on nonfermentable carbon sources. The CAT8 gene encodes a zinc cluster protein related to Saccharomyces cerevisiae Gal4p. Deletion of CAT8 caused a defect in glucose derepression which affected all key gluconeogenic enzymes. Derepression of glucose-repressible invertase and maltase was still normally regulated. A CAT8-lacZ promoter fusion revealed that the CAT8 gene itself is repressed by Cat4p (Mig1p). These results suggest that gluconeogenic genes are derepressed upon binding of Cat8p, whose synthesis depends on the release of Cat4p (Mig1p) from the CAT8 promoter. However, gluconeogenic promoters are still glucose repressed in cat4 mutants, which indicates that in addition to its transcription, the Cat8p protein needs further activation. The observation that multicopy expression of CAT8 reverses the inability of cat1 and cat3 mutants to grow on ethanol indicates that Cat8p might be the substrate of the Cat1p/Cat3p protein kinase.

DNA Discrimination by Gal4 and Other C6 Zinc Cluster Proteins.

DNA Discrimination by Gal4 and Other C6 Zinc Cluster Proteins.