Systematic deletion analysis of components in a glucose sensing pathway and the mating pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae points to significant interdependence

Abstract

Mating in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is an energy intensive process, so it follows that yeast cells would want to assess sugar availability prior to mating. Our lab has determined that optimal mating efficiency is dependent on a glucose sensing pathway mediated by the G‐protein coupled receptor, Gpr1. In this study we systematically assessed the impact of deficiencies in all known participants in the Gpr1 pathway on the mating pathway. The results indicated that many components of the glucose sensing pathway are necessary for optimal function of the mating pathway. To determine potential reciprocal effects, we assessed the impact of deficiencies in all known participants in the mating pathway on the glucose sensing pathway. The results indicated that the glucose sensing pathway was also dependent on many of the components of the mating pathway for complete activity. This analysis indicates significant interdependence between yeast mating and glucose sensing through Gpr1, and points to at least two levels of interaction between these two pathways. This research was funded by the National Science Foundation, Award #: 0952519.