Abstract #65

Free radicals and aging in S. cerevisiae: what can the cells do about it? Nika Erjavec, Thomas Nyström. Dept. of Cell and Molecular Biology, Göteborg University, Box 462, 40530 Göteborg, Sweden.
   Accumulation of free radicals is regarded as a key determinant of the cellular or tissue degeneration that accompanies aging. The yeast S. cerevisiae has been shown to be no exception to this, thought to be related to another hallmark of aging, the progressive accumulation of oxidized proteins. Whereas oxidatively damaged proteins can be selectively retained by the mother cell during cytokinesis, we show that Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) are equally abundant between progenitor and offspring. The latter however, exhibit a reduction in ROS once separation is completed. Our work shows that this process is Sir2p-dependent and relies on a higher detoxification rate of free radical species by the antioxidant defenses of the newly born cell. Segregation of oxidized substrates to the mother cell and neutralization of ROS by the daughter cell, would thus ensure the offspring to be free of damage and diminish the chances of generating any more of it.

Return to YGM 2006 Home at SGD