The conserved histone deacetylase Rpd3 and the DNA binding regulator Ume6 repress BOI1's meiotic transcript isoform during vegetative growth in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
Abstract
BOI1 and BOI2 are paralogs important for the actin cytoskeleton andpolar growth. BOI1 encodes a meiotic transcript isoform with an extended5-untranslated region predicted to impair protein translation. It is,however, unknown how the isoform is repressed during mitosis, and ifBoi1 is present during sporulation. By interpreting microarray data fromMATa cells, MATa/ cells, a starving MAT/ control, and a meiosis-impairedrrp6 mutant, we classified BOI1's extended isoform as earlymeiosis-specific. These results were confirmed by RNA-Sequencing, andextended by a 5-RACE assay and Northern blotting, showing that meioticcells induce the long isoform while the mitotic isoform remainsdetectable during meiosis. We provide evidence via motif predictions, anin vivo binding assay and genetic experiments that the Rpd3/Sin3/Ume6histone deacetylase complex, which represses meiotic genes duringmitosis, also prevents the induction of BOI1's 5-extended isoform inmitosis by direct binding of Ume6 to its URS1 target. Finally, we findthat Boi1 protein levels decline when cells switch from fermentation torespiration and sporulation. The histone deacetylase Rpd3 is conserved,and eukaryotic genes frequently encode transcripts with variable 5-UTRs.Our findings are therefore relevant for regulatory mechanisms involvedin the control of transcript isoforms in multi-cellular organisms.