Circadian Clock-Specific Roles for the Light Response Protein WHITE COLLAR-2
Year: 2001
Type: article
Abstract: To understand the role of white collar-2 in the Neurospora circadian clock, we examined alleles of wc-2 thought to encode partially functional proteins. We found that wc-2 allele ER24 contained a conservative mutation in the zinc finger. This mutation results in reduced levels of circadian rhythm-critical clock gene products, frq mRNA and FRQ protein, and in a lengthened period of the circadian clock. In addition, this mutation altered a second canonical property of the clock, temperature compensation: as temperature increased, period length decreased substantially. This temperature compensation defect correlated with a temperature-dependent increase in overall FRQ protein levels, with the relative increase being greater in wc-2 (ER24) than in wild type, while overall frq mRNA levels were largely unaltered by temperature. We suggest that this temperature-dependent increase in FRQ levels partially rescues the lowered levels of FRQ resulting from the wc-2 (ER24) defect, yielding a shorter period at higher temperatures. Thus, normal activity of the essential clock component WC-2, a positive regulator of frq, is critical for establishing period length and temperature compensation in this circadian system.
Source: Molecular and Cellular Biology
Institution: Dartmouth College
Language: English
Subfield: Endocrine and Autonomic Systems
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
Awards: G1628237272, G3700593, Genetic and Molecular Dissection of the Neurospora Clock, G4008756567, G4398246120, Interaction of Light and Clock Regulation in Neurospora, Identification and Analysis of Clock Controlled Genes, IDENTIFICATION AND ANALYSIS OF CLOCK CONTROLLED GENES, Genetic and Molecular Dissection of the Neurospora Clock
OpenAlex ID: W2164653529