SSI1 encodes a novel Hsp70 of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae endoplasmic reticulum

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) of the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae contains a well-characterized, essential member of the Hsp70 family of molecular chaperones, Kar2p. Kar2p has been shown to be involved in the translocation of proteins into the ER as well as the proper folding of proteins in that compartment. We report the characterization of a novel Hsp70 of the ER, Ssi1p. Ssi1p, which shares 24% of the amino acids of Kar2p, is not essential for growth under normal conditions. However, deletion of SSI1 results in cold sensitivity as well as enhanced resistance to manganese. The localization of Ssi1p to the ER, suggested by the presence of a conserved S. cerevisiae ER retention signal at its C terminus, was confirmed by subcellular fractionation, protease protection assays, and immunofluorescence. The SSI1 promoter contains an element with similarity to the unfolded protein response element of KAR2. Like KAR2, SSI1 is induced both in the presence of tunicamycin and in a kar2-159 mutant strain, conditions which lead to an accumulation of unfolded proteins in the ER. Unlike KAR2, however, SSI1 is not induced by heat shock. Deletion of SSI1 shows a complex pattern of genetic interactions with various conditional alleles of KAR2, ranging from synthetic lethality to synthetic rescue. Interestingly, SSI1 deletion strains show a partial block in translocation of multiple proteins into the ER, suggesting that Ssi1p plays a direct role in the translocation process.