Comparative Functional Genomics of the Fission Yeasts

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 332; no. 6032; pp. 930 - 936
• Main Authors: Rhind, Nicholas, Chen, Zehua, Yassour, Moran, Thompson, Dawn A., Haas, Brian J., Habib, Naomi, Wapinski, Ilan, Roy, Sushmita, Lin, Michael F., Heiman, David I., Young, Sarah K., Furuya, Kanji, Guo, Yabin, Pidoux, Alison, Chen, Huei Mei, Robbertse, Barbara, Goldberg, Jonathan M., Aoki, Keita, Bayne, Elizabeth H., Berlin, Aaron M., Desjardins, Christopher A., Dobbs, Edward, Dukaj, Livio, Fan, Lin, FitzGerald, Michael G., French, Courtney, Gujja, Sharvari, Hansen, Klavs, Keifenheim, Dan, Levin, Joshua Z., Mosher, Rebecca A., Müller, Carolin A., Pfiffner, Jenna, Priest, Margaret, Russ, Carsten, Smialowska, Agata, Swoboda, Peter, Sykes, Sean M., Vaughn, Matthew, Vengrova, Sonya, Yoder, Ryan, Zeng, Qiandong, Allshire, Robin, Baulcombe, David, Birren, Bruce W., Brown, William, Ekwall, Karl, Kellis, Manolis, Leatherwood, Janet, Levin, Henry, Margalit, Hanah, Martienssen, Rob, Nieduszynski, Conrad A., Spatafora, Joseph W., Friedman, Nir, Dalgaard, Jacob Z., Baumann, Peter, Niki, Hironori, Regev, Aviv, Nusbaum, Chad
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Association for the Advancement of Science 20.05.2011; The American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Subjects: Ascomycetes; Biological and medical sciences; Centromere - genetics; Centromere - physiology; Centromere - ultrastructure; Centromeres; Chromosomes; Classical genetics, quantitative genetics, hybrids; Comparative studies; DNA Transposable Elements; Ethanol; Evolution, Molecular; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Expression Profiling; Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal; Genes; Genes, Mating Type, Fungal; Genetic loci; Genetics of eukaryotes. Biological and molecular evolution; Genome, Fungal; Genomes; Genomics; Glucose - metabolism; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Meiosis; Microbiology; Molecular Sequence Annotation; Molecular Sequence Data; Phylogeny; Regulatory Elements, Transcriptional; RESEARCH ARTICLE; RNA, Antisense - genetics; RNA, Fungal - genetics; RNA, Small Interfering - genetics; RNA, Untranslated - genetics; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Saccharomycetales; Schizosaccharomyces; Schizosaccharomyces - genetics; Schizosaccharomyces - growth & development; Schizosaccharomyces - metabolism; Schizosaccharomyces pombe; Schizosaccharomyces pombe Proteins - genetics; Schizosaccharomyces pombe Proteins - metabolism; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Species Specificity; Transcription Factors - genetics; Transcription Factors - metabolism; Transcription, Genetic; Transposons; Vegetals; Yeast; Yeasts; Ascomycota; Fungi; Schizosaccharomyces japonicus; Schizosaccharomyces pombe; Comparative genomics; Schizosaccharomyces octosporus; Functional genomics
• ISSN: 0036-8075; 1095-9203; 1095-9203
• DOI: 10.1126/science.1203357

The fission yeast clade—comprising Schizosaccharomyces pombe, S. octosporus, S. cryophilus, and S. japonicus—occupies the basal branch of Ascomycete fungi and is an important model of eukaryote biology. A comparative annotation of these genomes identified a near extinction of transposons and the associated innovation of transposon-free centromeres. Expression analysis established that meiotic genes are subject to antisense transcription during vegetative growth, which suggests a mechanism for their tight regulation. In addition, trans-acting regulators control new genes within the context of expanded functional modules for meiosis and stress response. Differences in gene content and regulation also explain why, unlike the budding yeast of Saccharomycotina, fission yeasts cannot use ethanol as a primary carbon source. These analyses elucidate the genome structure and gene regulation of fission yeast and provide tools for investigation across the Schizosaccharomyces clade.