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Journal of Bacteriology, December 2000, p. 7007-7013, Vol. 182, No. 24
Kluyver Laboratory of Biotechnology,
Department of Microbiology and Enzymology, Delft University of
Technology, 2628 BC Delft,1 and
Biological Centre, Department of Microbiology, University of
Groningen, 9751 NN Haren,3 The Netherlands,
and Institut für Mikrobiologie, J. W. Goethe
Universität Frankfurt, Biozentrum N250, 60439 Frankfurt,
Germany2
Received 17 May 2000/Accepted 27 September 2000
The Saccharomyces cerevisiae ICL1 gene encodes
isocitrate lyase, an essential enzyme for growth on ethanol and
acetate. Previous studies have demonstrated that the highly homologous
ICL2 gene (YPR006c) is transcribed during the growth of
wild-type cells on ethanol. However, even when multiple copies are
introduced, ICL2 cannot complement the growth defect of
icl1 null mutants. It has therefore been suggested that
ICL2 encodes a nonsense mRNA or nonfunctional protein. In
the methylcitrate cycle of propionyl-coenzyme A metabolism,
2-methylisocitrate is converted to succinate and pyruvate, a reaction
similar to that catalyzed by isocitrate lyase. To investigate whether
ICL2 encodes a specific 2-methylisocitrate lyase,
isocitrate lyase and 2-methylisocitrate lyase activities were assayed
in cell extracts of wild-type S. cerevisiae and of isogenic
icl1, icl2, and icl1 icl2 null
mutants. Isocitrate lyase activity was absent in icl1 and
icl1 icl2 null mutants, whereas in contrast,
2-methylisocitrate lyase activity was detected in the wild type and
single icl mutants but not in the icl1 icl2 mutant. This demonstrated that ICL2 encodes a specific
2-methylisocitrate lyase and that the ICL1-encoded
isocitrate lyase exhibits a low but significant activity with
2-methylisocitrate. Subcellular fractionation studies and experiments
with an ICL2-green fluorescent protein fusion demonstrated that the
ICL2-encoded 2-methylisocitrate lyase is located in the
mitochondrial matrix. Similar to that of ICL1,
transcription of ICL2 is subject to glucose catabolite repression. In glucose-limited cultures, growth with threonine as a
nitrogen source resulted in a ca. threefold induction of ICL2 mRNA levels and of 2-methylisocitrate lyase activity
in cell extracts relative to cultures grown with ammonia as the
nitrogen source. This is consistent with an involvement of the
2-methylcitrate cycle in threonine catabolism.
0021-9193/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
The Saccharomyces cerevisiae ICL2 Gene
Encodes a Mitochondrial 2-Methylisocitrate Lyase Involved in
Propionyl-Coenzyme A Metabolism
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Kluyver
Laboratory of Biotechnology, Delft University of Technology,
Julianalaan 67, 2628 BC Delft, The Netherlands. Phone: 31 15 278 3214. Fax: 31 15 278 2355. E-mail:
j.t.pronk{at}stm.tudelft.nl.
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