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It is well known that proteins called prions in the brain cause diseases, but a study published today in the journal eLife suggests that they may help yeast cope with rapidly changing environmental conditions
.
Research results indicate that prions may be part of an important epigenetic mechanism that controls cell growth under changing conditions
.
A better understanding of this role can help us understand diseases that involve abnormal cell growth or cell death
A prion is a protein that folds abnormally into different shapes
.
Prions can spread or pass to new cells
"Although scientists have known about prions for decades, we still don't know how to distinguish between beneficial prions and harmful prions," said co-first author Dr.
David Garcia, who was a former medical student at Stanford University School of Medicine in California.
Postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Chemical Systems Biology, now an assistant professor at the Institute of Molecular Biology at the University of Oregon
.
To learn more, Garcia and his colleagues studied a yeast enzyme called pseudouracil synthase, which can have two different shapes
.
They found that in its other prion form, this enzyme caused the yeast to multiply and grow faster, although these changes were at the expense of the yeast's shorter lifespan
Through computer modeling, the research team showed that when environmental resources are abundant, the changes brought about by prions are beneficial, but when resources are scarce, they are harmful
.
By reducing the so-called "chaperone protein," they also showed that the prion can return to its original enzymatic shape
"We have identified a new role for prions, they can change the growth and survival of cells," said co-first author Edgar Campbell, a PhD student in chemistry and systems biology at the Stanford University School of Medicine
.
"These findings suggest that prions may be another form of epigenetic control of cells
Epigenetic changes can change the behavior of cells without changing their DNA, can be passed on to a new generation of cells, and may be turned on or off by environmental conditions
.
The author believes that more understanding of the role of prions in epigenetic control may be essential to improve our understanding of prion diseases
Dr.
Daniel Jarosz, associate professor of chemistry, systems biology, and developmental biology at Stanford Medical School, and senior author Dr.
Daniel Jarosz concluded: “When we sequence the genome, these types of epigenetic changes are ignored, but they still have a significant impact on cell growth.
Impact
.
" "It is important to understand more about the consequences of prion-driven cell epigenetic changes and find new ways to find them in yeast and other organisms
DOI
10.
A prion accelerates proliferation at the expense of lifespan
