Effect of calcofluor white on chitin synthases from Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The growths of Saccharomyces cerevisiae wild-type strain and another strain containing a disrupted structural gene for chitin synthase (chs1::URA3), defective in chitin synthase 1 (Chs1) but showing a new chitin synthase activity (Chs2), were affected by Calcofluor. To be effective, the interaction of Calcofluor with growing cells had to occur at around pH 6. Treatment of growing cells from these strains with the fluorochrome led to an increase in the total levels of Chs1 and Chs2 activities measured on permeabilized cells. During treatment, basal levels (activities expressed in the absence of exogenous proteolytic activation) of Chs1 and Chs2 increased nine- and fourfold, respectively, through a mechanism dependent on protein synthesis, since the effect was abolished by cycloheximide. During alpha-factor treatment, both Chs1 and Chs2 levels increased; however, as opposed to what occurred during the mitotic cell cycle, there was no further increase in Chs1 or Chs2 activities by Calcofluor treatment.