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Eukaryotic Cell, February 2004, p. 190-199, Vol. 3, No. 1
1535-9778/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/EC.3.1.190-199.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Candida albicans Lacking the Gene Encoding the Regulatory Subunit of Protein Kinase A Displays a Defect in Hyphal Formation and an Altered Localization of the Catalytic Subunit

Alejandro Cassola,1 Marc Parrot,2 Susana Silberstein,1 Beatrice B. Magee,3 Susana Passeron,1 Luc Giasson,2 and María L. Cantore1*

Cátedra de Microbiología, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de Buenos Aires, IBYF-CONICET, C1417DSE Buenos Aires, Argentina,1 School of Dentistry, GREB Laval University, Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Canada G1K 7P4,2 Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota 551083

Received 13 June 2003/ Accepted 1 December 2003

The fungal pathogen Candida albicans switches from a yeast-like to a filamentous mode of growth in response to a variety of environmental conditions. We examined the morphogenetic behavior of C. albicans yeast cells lacking the BCY1 gene, which encodes the regulatory subunit of protein kinase A. We cloned the BCY1 gene and generated a bcy1 tpk2 double mutant strain because a homozygous bcy1 mutant in a wild-type genetic background could not be obtained. In the bcy1 tpk2 mutant, protein kinase A activity (due to the presence of the TPK1 gene) was cyclic AMP independent, indicating that the cells harbored an unregulated phosphotransferase activity. This mutant has constitutive protein kinase A activity and displayed a defective germinative phenotype in N-acetylglucosamine and in serum-containing medium. The subcellular localization of a Tpk1-green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion protein was examined in wild-type, tpk2 null, and bcy1 tpk2 double mutant strains. The fusion protein was observed to be predominantly nuclear in wild-type and tpk2 strains. This was not the case in the bcy1 tpk2 double mutant, where it appeared dispersed throughout the cell. Coimmunoprecipitation of Bcy1p with the Tpk1-GFP fusion protein demonstrated the interaction of these proteins inside the cell. These results suggest that one of the roles of Bcy1p is to tether the protein kinase A catalytic subunit to the nucleus.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Cátedra de Microbiología, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Avda. San Martín 4453, C1417DSE Buenos Aires, Argentina. E-mail: cantore{at}agro.uba.ar.

Eukaryotic Cell, February 2004, p. 190-199, Vol. 3, No. 1
1535-9778/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/EC.3.1.190-199.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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