Induction of neutral trehalase Nth1 by heat and osmotic stress is controlled by STRE elements and Msn2/Msn4 transcription factors: variations of PKA effect during stress and growth.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae neutral trehalase, encoded by NTH1, controls trehalose hydrolysis in response to multiple stress conditions, including nutrient limitation. The presence of three stress responsive elements (STREs, CCCCT) in the NTH1 promoter suggested that the transcriptional activator proteins Msn2 and Msn4, as well as the cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA), control the stress-induced expression of Nth1. Here, we give direct evidence that Msn2/Msn4 and the STREs control the heat-, osmotic stress- and diauxic shift-dependent induction of Nth1. Disruption of MSN2 and MSN4 abolishes or significantly reduces the heat- and NaCl-induced increases in Nth1 activity and transcription. Stress-induced increases in activity of a lacZ reporter gene put under control of the NTH1 promoter is nearly absent in the double mutant. In all instances, basal expression is also reduced by about 50%. The trehalose concentration in the msn2 msn4 double mutant increases less during heat stress and drops more slowly during recovery than in wild-type cells. This shows that Msn2/Msn4-controlled expression of enzymes of trehalose synthesis and hydrolysis help to maintain trehalose concentration during stress. However, the Msn2/Msn4-independent mechanism exists for heat control of trehalose metabolism. Site-directed mutagenesis of the three STREs (CCCCT changed to CATCT) in NTH1 promoter fused to a reporter gene indicates that the relative proximity of STREs to each other is important for the function of NTH1. Elimination of the three STREs abolishes the stress-induced responses and reduces basal expression by 30%. Contrary to most STRE-regulated genes, the PKA effect on the induction of NTH1 by heat and sodium chloride is variable. During diauxic growth, NTH1 promoter-controlled reporter activity strongly increases, as opposed to the previously observed decrease in Nth1 activity, suggesting a tight but opposite control of the enzyme at the transcriptional and post-translational levels. Apparently, inactive trehalase is accumulated concomitant with the accumulation of trehalose. These results might help to elucidate the general connection between control by STREs, Msn2/Msn4 and PKA and, in particular, how these components play a role in control of trehalose metabolism.

Stability of neutral trehalase during heat stress in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is dependent on the activity of the catalytic subunits of cAMP-dependent protein kinase, Tpk1 and Tpk2.

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae cAMP-dependent protein kinase (cAPK) is involved in nutrient sensing and growth regulation via the Ras/cAMP pathway. Target enzymes, e.g. neutral trehalase, are activated or inactivated rapidly by cAPK-mediated phosphorylation. In addition, stress-induced transcription of genes of the general stress-response, e.g. HSP12, is negatively regulated via cAPK. We have investigated the effect of low cAPK activity on the stress-induced expression of neutral trehalase Nth1p. For this purpose we used mutants (tpk1tpk2TPK3, tpk1TPK2tpk3 and TPK1tpk2tpk3) with double knockouts of the three TPK genes encoding catalytic subunits of cAPK. It is shown that the tpk1tpk2TPK3 mutant, which has very low cAPK activity, exhibits a heat-stress-induced inactivation of neutral trehalase that is not observed in tpk1TPK2tpk3, TPK1tpk2tpk3 mutants and wild-type cells. However, heat stress induces an increase in NTH1 mRNA in the tpk1tpk2TPK3 mutant. Introduction of a plasmid carrying the TPK1 or TPK2 gene into tpk1tpk2TPK3 cells restores the heat-induced increase of neutral trehalase activity. In vitro and in vivo results suggest that the heat induced inactivation of neutral trehalase is due to a reversible inactivation of Nth1p. Our data indicate that a certain level of phosphorylation is essential for maintenance of neutral trehalase activity during heat shock in S. cerevisiae. Two identical putative cAPK phosphorylation sites have been found in the sequence predicted for the Nth1p. Stabilization and activation of neutral trehalase may be regulated by these sites. Furthermore, our data suggest that the heat-stress-induced transcription of the NTH1 gene is not negatively regulated by cAPK, that the TPK genes have no effect on the glucose repression of the NTH1 gene, and that non-detectable neutral trehalase activity in derepressed tpk1tpk2TPK3 cells is correlated with the reduced thermotolerance observed in this strain, similar to the heat-shock-recovery defect reported for the nth1delta mutant.

Neutral trehalase Nth1p of Saccharomyces cerevisiae encoded by the NTH1 gene is a multiple stress responsive protein.

We have shown previously that expression of the NTH1 gene is increased at heat stress (40 degrees C) both at the mRNA and enzymatic activity levels. This increased expression was correlated to the requirement of the NTH1 gene for recovery after heat shock at 50 degrees C and the presence of stress responsive elements STRE (CCCCT) 3 times in its promoter region [S. Nwaka et al., FEBS Lett. 360 (1995) 286-290; S. Nwaka et al., J. Biol. Chem. 270 (1995) 10193-10198]. We show here that expression of the NTH1 gene and its product, neutral trehalase (Nthlp), are also induced by other stressors such as H2O2, CuSO4, NaAsO2, and cycloheximide (CHX). Heat-induced expression of the NTH1 gene is shown to be accompanied by accumulation of trehalose. In contrast, the chemical stressors which also induce the expression of NTH1 did not lead to accumulation of trehalose under similar conditions. Our data suggest that: (1) heat- and chemical stress-induced expression of neutral trehalase is largely due to de novo protein synthesis, and (2) different mechanisms may control the heat- and chemical stress-induced expression of NTH1 at the transcriptional level. Participation of neutral trehalase (Nth1p) in multiple stress response dependent and independent on trehalose is discussed.