Widespread Prion-Based Control of Growth and Differentiation Strategies in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

ABSTRACT: Theory and experiments suggest that organisms would benefit from pre-adaptation to future stressors based on reproducible environmental fluctuations experienced by their ancestors, but the mechanisms driving pre-adaptation remain enigmatic. We report that the [SMAUG⁺] prion allows yeast to anticipate nutrient repletion after periods of starvation, providing a strong selective advantage. By transforming the landscape of post-transcriptional gene expression, [SMAUG⁺] regulates the decision between two broad growth and survival strategies: mitotic proliferation or meiotic differentiation into a stress-resistant state. [SMAUG⁺] is common in laboratory yeast strains, where standard propagation practice produces regular cycles of nutrient scarcity followed by rep

SUBMITTER: Itakura AK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6980781 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature