Hog1 bypasses stress-mediated down-regulation of transcription by RNA polymerase II redistribution and chromatin remodeling.

TitleHog1 bypasses stress-mediated down-regulation of transcription by RNA polymerase II redistribution and chromatin remodeling.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2012
AuthorsNadal-Ribelles, Mariona, Conde Núria, Flores Oscar, González-Vallinas Juan, Eyras Eduardo, Orozco Modesto, de Nadal Eulàlia, and Posas Francesc
JournalGenome Biol
Volume13
PaginationR106
Date Published2012
ISSN1474-760X
KeywordsChromatin Assembly and Disassembly, DNA, Fungal, Genetic, Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases, Molecular Sequence Data, Physiological, RNA Polymerase II, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins, Sequence Analysis, Stress, Transcription
Abstract

BACKGROUND: Cells are subjected to dramatic changes of gene expression upon environmental changes. Stress causes a general down-regulation of gene expression together with the induction of a set of stress-responsive genes. The p38-related stress-activated protein kinase Hog1 is an important regulator of transcription upon osmostress in yeast.

RESULTS: Genome-wide localization studies of RNA polymerase II (RNA Pol II) and Hog1 showed that stress induced major changes in RNA Pol II localization, with a shift toward stress-responsive genes relative to housekeeping genes. RNA Pol II relocalization required Hog1, which was also localized to stress-responsive loci. In addition to RNA Pol II-bound genes, Hog1 also localized to RNA polymerase III-bound genes, pointing to a wider role for Hog1 in transcriptional control than initially expected. Interestingly, an increasing association of Hog1 with stress-responsive genes was strongly correlated with chromatin remodeling and increased gene expression. Remarkably, MNase-Seq analysis showed that although chromatin structure was not significantly altered at a genome-wide level in response to stress, there was pronounced chromatin remodeling for those genes that displayed Hog1 association.

CONCLUSION: Hog1 serves to bypass the general down-regulation of gene expression that occurs in response to osmostress, and does so both by targeting RNA Pol II machinery and by inducing chromatin remodeling at stress-responsive loci.

DOI10.1186/gb-2012-13-11-r106