DNA sequence divergence and functional conservation at the STB locus of yeast 2 microns circle variants

2 microns DNA isolated from industrial Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeasts exhibited extensive restriction fragment length polymorphisms. At least five 2 microns species were identified from eleven [cir+] strains. Southern hybridization mapped restriction fragment length polymorphisms at STB, a cis-acting locus essential for plasmid partitioning. Some 2 microns variants (e.g., 4110-2 microns and 4108-2 microns) had an altered number of 125-bp consensus repeats at STB. However, the corresponding region of 7754-2 microns has only approximately 70% nucleotide sequence homology with the 125-bp STB consensus repeat. YRp plasmids containing 7754-2 microns STB behave as YEp plasmids in laboratory yeasts, thereby indicating STB sequence divergence coupled to conservation of function.