Showing papers by "Regina Menezes published in 2005"

The yeast stress response. Role of the Yap family of b-ZIP transcription factors. The PABMB Lecture delivered on 30 June 2004 at the 29th FEBS Congress in Warsaw.

Abstract: The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae possesses a very flexible and complex programme of gene expression when exposed to a plethora of environmental insults. Therefore, yeast cell homeostasis control is achieved through a highly coordinated mechanism of transcription regulation involving several factors, each performing specific functions. Here, we present our current knowledge of the function of the yeast activator protein family, formed by eight basic-leucine zipper trans-activators, which have been shown to play an important role in stress response.

Role of the Yap family of b-ZIP transcription factors The PABMB Lecture delivered on 30 June 2004 at the 29th FEBS Congress in Warsaw

Abstract: The capacity for adaptation to changes in intra- andextracellular conditions is a universal prerequisite foran organism’s survival and evolution. The existence ofmolecular mechanisms of response, repair and adapta-tion, many of which are greatly conserved across nat-ure, endows the cell with the plasticity it requires toadjust to its ever-changing environment, a homeostaticevent that is termed the stress response. Through thesensing and transduction of the stress signal into thenucleus, a genetic reprogramming occurs that leads, onthe one hand, to a decrease in the expression of house-keeping genes and protein synthesis and, on the otherhand, to an enhancement of the expression of genesencoding stress proteins. These include molecularchaperones responsible for maintaining protein folding,transcription factors that further modulate geneexpression and a diverse network of players includingmembrane transporters and proteins involved in repairand detoxification pathways, nutrient metabolism, andosmolyte production, to name a few. Survival andgrowth resumption imply successful cellular adaptationto the new conditions as well as the repair of damageincurred to the cell. Although specific stress conditionselicit distinct cellular responses, underlying gene