Rm. Wright et al., REVERSIBLE PSEUDOHYPHAL GROWTH IN HAPLOID SACCHAROMYCES-CEREVISIAE ISAN AEROBIC PROCESS, Current genetics, 23(5-6), 1993, pp. 388-391
Pseudohyphal growth in Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been postulated to
be an adaptation to foraging for nitrogen during nitrogen starvation.
This process was described as a strictly diploid phenomenon which did
not occur in haploid yeast cells and was under the genetic control of
both the mating-type locus and a group of five genes, the BUD genes,
regulating bud formation. We have also observed a dimorphic growth pat
tern in yeast growing on various nitrogen-limiting synthetic media. Ho
wever, and in contrast to a previous report, we find that pseudohyphal
growth is not precluded in haploid cells. We demonstrate that haploid
pseudohyphal growth is strictly oxygen-dependent and is rapidly rever
sible, defining pseudohyphal growth as a reversible developmental path
way in yeast.