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Budding Yeast Protein Extraction and Purification for the Study of Function, Interactions, and Post-translational Modifications
Published on: October 30, 2013
Studies on oligosaccharyl transferase in yeast
1State University of New York at Stony Brook, NY USA. wlennarz@notes.cc.sunnysb.edu
Acta Biochimica Polonica
|December 15, 2007
Summary
Oligosaccharyltransferase (OT) in yeast comprises nine subunits, with five essential genes. Homologs of these OT subunits are found across eukaryotes, indicating conserved function.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Glycoscience
- Cell Biology
Background:
- The Oligosaccharyltransferase (OT) complex is crucial for protein N-glycosylation.
- In yeast, OT is composed of nine distinct subunits, each possessing transmembrane segments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the known subunits of the yeast OT complex.
- To highlight the essentiality and genetic characteristics of yeast OT subunits.
- To discuss the structural and evolutionary conservation of OT subunits.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of published studies on yeast OT.
- Analysis of gene essentiality for OT subunits.
- Comparison of yeast OT subunits with homologs in other organisms.
Main Results:
- Yeast OT consists of nine subunits; five are encoded by essential genes (Swp1p, Wbp1p, Ost2p, Ost1p, Stt3p), and four are non-essential (Ost3p, Ost4p, Ost5p, Ost6p).
- All yeast OT subunits have been cloned and sequenced.
- Structural information exists for yeast Ost4p (NMR) and an archaeal Stt3p homolog (preliminary crystal structure).
Conclusions:
- Homologs of all yeast OT subunits have been identified in higher eukaryotes.
- The conservation of OT subunits suggests a fundamental role in eukaryotic biology.
- Further structural and functional studies are warranted to fully elucidate OT complex mechanisms.
