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PMID: 16215172 Published · ppublish English Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Nuclear accumulation of the GATA factor AreA in response to complete nitrogen starvation by regulation of nuclear export.

Eukaryotic cell ·Vol. 4 ·No. 10 ·2005-10-00 ·Pages 1646-53

Todd RB, Fraser JA, Wong KH, Davis MA, Hynes MJ

Abstract

Both the availability and the quality of nutrients affect cellular functions by controlling gene activity. AreA, a member of the GATA family of transcription factors, globally activates expression of genes involved in nitrogen source utilization in Aspergillus nidulans. The quality of the nitrogen source determines the level and activation capacity of AreA through controls at the level of areA mRNA stability and by interaction of AreA with the corepressor NmrA. The availability of potential nitrogen sources also affects the activation capacity of AreA. We show that the complete absence of a nitrogen source results in an enhanced level of AreA-dependent gene expression and that this response is independent of mechanisms regulating AreA activity in response to nitrogen source quality. During nitrogen starvation AreA accumulates in the nucleus, but the presence of a potential nitrogen source or carbon starvation prevents this accumulation. Furthermore, accumulated AreA is rapidly lost from the nuclei of nitrogen-starved cells when a nitrogen source is supplied or when a carbon source is absent, and this accompanies arrest of the AreA-dependent nitrogen starvation response on regulated gene expression. By the generation of a leptomycin B-sensitive mutant, we have been able to show that nuclear exit occurs via the CrmA exportin. We conclude that sensing mechanisms discriminate between starvation and the presence of potential nutrients that can signal to the AreA transcription factor. Nitrogen source availability, but not quality, affects nuclear accumulation by regulating nuclear exit of AreA, providing a rapid response to changes in the supply of nutrients.

MeSH Terms
Active Transport, Cell Nucleus/physiology Antifungal Agents/pharmacology Aspergillus nidulans/cytology,drug effects,physiology Carbon/metabolism Cell Nucleus/metabolism Fatty Acids, Unsaturated/pharmacology Fungal Proteins/genetics,metabolism Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal Nitrogen/metabolism Transcription Factors/genetics,metabolism
Chemicals
Antifungal Agents AreA protein, Aspergillus nidulans Fatty Acids, Unsaturated Fungal Proteins Transcription Factors Carbon Nitrogen leptomycin B
Authors & Affiliations
5 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Todd Richard B
Department of Genetics, The University of Melbourne, Victoria 3010, Australia.
Fraser James A
Wong Koon Ho
Davis Meryl A
Hynes Michael J
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Article Info
Journal
Eukaryotic cell
Abbr.
Eukaryot Cell
ISSN
1535-9778
DOI
10.1128/EC.4.10.1646-1653.2005
Published
2005-10-00
Pages
1646-53
Language
English
Region
United States
NLM ID
101130731
PMCID
PMC1265900
Subset
IM
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1128/EC.4.10.1646-1653.2005 PMC Full Text View journal details
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