Regulation of the Transcription Factor Gcn4 by Pho85 Cyclin Pcl5

Abstract

The yeast transcription factor Gcn4 is regulated by amino acid starvation at the levels of both protein synthesis and stability. Gcn4 degradation depends on the ubiquitination complex SCF^CDC4 and requires phosphorylation by the cyclin-dependent kinase Pho85. Here, we show that Pcl5 is the Pho85 cyclin specifically required for Gcn4 degradation. PCL5 is itself induced by Gcn4 at the level of transcription. However, even when PCL5 is constitutively overexpressed, Pho85-associated Gcn4 phosphorylation activity is reduced in starved cells and Gcn4 degradation is decreased. Under these conditions, the Pcl5 protein disappears because of rapid constitutive turnover. We suggest that, by virtue of its constitutive metabolic instability, Pcl5 may be a sensor of cellular protein biosynthetic capacity. The fact that PCL5 is transcriptionally induced in the presence of Gcn4 suggests that it is part of a homeostatic mechanism that reduces Gcn4 levels upon recovery from starvation.

We thank Na'ama Barkai for pointing out the coregulation of PCL5 and amino acid biosynthesis genes; Masafumi Nishizawa, Erin O'Shea, and David Stillman for providing plasmids and strains; Sharon Aviram for assistance in plasmid construction; and Sara Selig for critical reading of the manuscript.

This research was supported by a grant from the Israel Science Foundation to D.K.