Molecular analysis of the yeast SER1 gene encoding 3-phosphoserine aminotransferase: regulation by general control and serine repression

Although serine and glycine are ubiquitous amino acids the genetic and biochemical regulation of their synthesis has not been studied in detail. The SER1 gene encodes 3-phosphoserine aminotransferase which catalyzes the formation of phosphoserine from 3-phosphohydroxypyruvate, which is obtained by oxidation of 3-phosphoglycerate, an intermediate of glycolysis. Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells provided with fermentable carbon sources mainly use this pathway (glycolytic pathway) to synthesize serine and glycine. The isolation of the SER1 gene by complementation and the disruption of the chromosomal locus is reported. Sequence analysis revealed an open reading frame encoding a protein with a predicted molecular weight of 43401 Da. A previously described mammalian progesterone-induced protein shares 47% similarity with SER1 over the entire protein, indicating a common function for both proteins. It is demonstrated that SER1 transcription is regulated by the general control of amino-acid biosynthesis mediated by GCN4. Additionally, DNaseI protection experiments proved the binding of GCN4 protein to the SER1 promoter in vitro and three GCN4 recognition elements (GCREs) were identified. Furthermore, there is evidence for an additional regulation by serine end product repression.