Yeast Response to Stress

A special issue of Journal of Fungi (ISSN 2309-608X).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2023) | Viewed by 4687

Special Issue Editors

CSIC-Instituto de Biomedicina de Valencia (IBV), Valencia, Spain
Interests: environmental stress response; signal transduction; gene expression; mitochondrial homeostasis; mitochondrial cell death; yeast
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Plantas (IBMCP UPV-CSIC), Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Valencia, Spain
Interests: yeast biotechnology; cell homeostasis; stress adaptation; mitochondrial function; yeast display; yeast genetics and biochemistry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

All living organisms face environmental challenges (stress) that force them to actively respond, stimulate cellular stress defence systems, and eventually acquire an adapted cellular homeostasis which is compatible with the stressor. The capacity to respond to stress is a universal cellular feature in all domains of life. Failure to efficiently execute a stress response compromises the fitness of an organism. Numerous key stress pathways are conserved from unicellular organisms to higher eukaryotes. Therefore, insights into how these pathways operate in simple model organisms, such as yeast, are crucial for understanding stress-related diseases and aging in humans. The mechanisms of stress tolerance are being intensively studied in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Yeast responds to diverse stresses by initiating both general and stress-specific responses that generally protect cells during and after stress exposure. In this Special Issue, we want to summarize, update, and expand our knowledge on how yeast cells are able to precisely respond to stress to mount an appropriate cellular defence, with a focus on budding yeast, but not excluding other yeast species. We will welcome original research papers and timely reviews that contribute to a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of stress responses, from fundamental environmental changes in budding yeast to adaptations occurring in yeast biotechnological environments and adaptive responses to pharmaceuticals with relevance for pathogenic fungi.

Dr. Markus Proft
Dr. Amparo Pascual-Ahuir
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • environmental stress response
  • stress sensing
  • stress tolerance
  • stress adaptation
  • signal transduction
  • yeast
  • drug resistance

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Review

16 pages, 3459 KiB  
Review
Fundamental and Applicative Aspects of the Unfolded Protein Response in Yeasts
by Yuki Ishiwata-Kimata and Yukio Kimata
J. Fungi 2023, 9(10), 989; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof9100989 - 05 Oct 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1059
Abstract
Upon the dysfunction or functional shortage of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), namely, ER stress, eukaryotic cells commonly provoke a protective gene expression program called the unfolded protein response (UPR). The molecular mechanism of UPR has been uncovered through frontier genetic studies using Saccharomyces [...] Read more.
Upon the dysfunction or functional shortage of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), namely, ER stress, eukaryotic cells commonly provoke a protective gene expression program called the unfolded protein response (UPR). The molecular mechanism of UPR has been uncovered through frontier genetic studies using Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model organism. Ire1 is an ER-located transmembrane protein that directly senses ER stress and is activated as an RNase. During ER stress, Ire1 promotes the splicing of HAC1 mRNA, which is then translated into a transcription factor that induces the expression of various genes, including those encoding ER-located molecular chaperones and protein modification enzymes. While this mainstream intracellular UPR signaling pathway was elucidated in the 1990s, new intriguing insights have been gained up to now. For instance, various additional factors allow UPR evocation strictly in response to ER stress. The UPR machineries in other yeasts and fungi, including pathogenic species, are another important research topic. Moreover, industrially beneficial yeast strains carrying an enforced and enlarged ER have been produced through the artificial and constitutive induction of the UPR. In this article, we review canonical and up-to-date insights concerning the yeast UPR, mainly from the viewpoint of the functions and regulation of Ire1 and HAC1. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Yeast Response to Stress)
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21 pages, 1365 KiB  
Review
The Yeast Protein Kinase Sch9 Functions as a Central Nutrient-Responsive Hub That Calibrates Metabolic and Stress-Related Responses
by Marco Caligaris, Belém Sampaio-Marques, Riko Hatakeyama, Benjamin Pillet, Paula Ludovico, Claudio De Virgilio, Joris Winderickx and Raffaele Nicastro
J. Fungi 2023, 9(8), 787; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof9080787 - 26 Jul 2023
Viewed by 1397
Abstract
Yeast cells are equipped with different nutrient signaling pathways that enable them to sense the availability of various nutrients and adjust metabolism and growth accordingly. These pathways are part of an intricate network since most of them are cross-regulated and subject to feedback [...] Read more.
Yeast cells are equipped with different nutrient signaling pathways that enable them to sense the availability of various nutrients and adjust metabolism and growth accordingly. These pathways are part of an intricate network since most of them are cross-regulated and subject to feedback regulation at different levels. In yeast, a central role is played by Sch9, a protein kinase that functions as a proximal effector of the conserved growth-regulatory TORC1 complex to mediate information on the availability of free amino acids. However, recent studies established that Sch9 is more than a TORC1-effector as its activity is tuned by several other kinases. This allows Sch9 to function as an integrator that aligns different input signals to achieve accuracy in metabolic responses and stress-related molecular adaptations. In this review, we highlight the latest findings on the structure and regulation of Sch9, as well as its role as a nutrient-responsive hub that impacts on growth and longevity of yeast cells. Given that most key players impinging on Sch9 are well-conserved, we also discuss how studies on Sch9 can be instrumental to further elucidate mechanisms underpinning healthy aging in mammalians. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Yeast Response to Stress)
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22 pages, 1461 KiB  
Review
Advances in S. cerevisiae Engineering for Xylose Fermentation and Biofuel Production: Balancing Growth, Metabolism, and Defense
by Ellen R. Wagner and Audrey P. Gasch
J. Fungi 2023, 9(8), 786; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof9080786 - 26 Jul 2023
Viewed by 1724
Abstract
Genetically engineering microorganisms to produce chemicals has changed the industrialized world. The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is frequently used in industry due to its genetic tractability and unique metabolic capabilities. S. cerevisiae has been engineered to produce novel compounds from diverse sugars found [...] Read more.
Genetically engineering microorganisms to produce chemicals has changed the industrialized world. The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is frequently used in industry due to its genetic tractability and unique metabolic capabilities. S. cerevisiae has been engineered to produce novel compounds from diverse sugars found in lignocellulosic biomass, including pentose sugars, like xylose, not recognized by the organism. Engineering high flux toward novel compounds has proved to be more challenging than anticipated since simply introducing pathway components is often not enough. Several studies show that the rewiring of upstream signaling is required to direct products toward pathways of interest, but doing so can diminish stress tolerance, which is important in industrial conditions. As an example of these challenges, we reviewed S. cerevisiae engineering efforts, enabling anaerobic xylose fermentation as a model system and showcasing the regulatory interplay’s controlling growth, metabolism, and stress defense. Enabling xylose fermentation in S. cerevisiae requires the introduction of several key metabolic enzymes but also regulatory rewiring of three signaling pathways at the intersection of the growth and stress defense responses: the RAS/PKA, Snf1, and high osmolarity glycerol (HOG) pathways. The current studies reviewed here suggest the modulation of global signaling pathways should be adopted into biorefinery microbial engineering pipelines to increase efficient product yields. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Yeast Response to Stress)
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