The novel SLIK histone acetyltransferase complex functions in the yeast retrograde response pathway

The SAGA complex is a conserved histone acetyltransferase-coactivator that regulates gene expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. SAGA contains a number of subunits known to function in transcription including Spt and Ada proteins, the Gcn5 acetyltransferase, a subset of TATA-binding-protein-associated factors (TAF(II)s), and Tra1. Here we report the identification of SLIK (SAGA-like), a complex related in composition to SAGA. Notably SLIK uniquely contains the protein Rtg2, linking the function of SLIK to the retrograde response pathway. Yeast harboring mutations in both SAGA and SLIK complexes displays synthetic phenotypes more severe than those of yeast with mutation of either complex alone. We present data indicating that distinct forms of the SAGA complex may regulate specific subsets of genes and that SAGA and SLIK have multiple partly overlapping activities, which play a critical role in transcription by RNA polymerase II.