Cloning and genetic analysis of the gene encoding a new protein kinase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

We have isolated a single gene from the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae encoding a potential 800 amino acid polypeptide of calculated M(r) 90,098 Da. This protein consists of an N-terminal region that shares significant homology with the catalytic domains of several serine- and threonine-specific protein kinases, as well as a large, unique, C-terminal domain of unknown function. Haploid disruption mutants are viable and do not exhibit any readily observable growth defects under varying conditions of temperature, nutrients or osmotic strength. Due to the apparent structural similarity between this kinase and the protein products of the KIN1 and KIN2 genes, we have chosen to name this new gene KIN3.