Expression and interaction of Cdc7 and Dbf4 proteins in S.cerevisiae meiosis.
Seth A. Hanson, Joshua H. Olson, Anne M. Galbraith
Biology Department, UW- La Crosse, 1725 State St., La Crosse, WI, 54601, USA
Several genes have been studied that are required for the normal progression of the cell cycle. Two of these genes, CDC7 and DBF4, encode a protein kinase and a cyclin-like protein that interact together to initiate DNA replication during mitosis. Both cdc7 and dbf4 mutants arrest in the mitotic cell cycle prior to DNA replication. These genes are also needed for meiosis, although the exact role that they play is unknown. In order to determine a function for these two proteins in meiosis, western analysis and co-immunoprecipitation were used to examine the timing of their expression and a possible interaction between them. The timing of expression and interaction was then compared to the timing of several events in meiosis including DNA replication, recombination, and both nuclear divisions. Results of these experiments will be presented and a model for the role of these two genes in meiosis will be proposed.
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