Regulation of nitrate and methylamine metabolism by multiple nitrogen sources in the methylotrophic yeast Candida boidinii

Abstract

The methylotrophic yeast Candida boidinii, which is capable of growth on methanol as a sole carbon source, can proliferate on the leaf surface of Arabidopsis thaliana. Previously, we demonstrated that adaptation to a change in the major available nitrogen source from nitrate to methylamine during the host plant aging was crucial for yeast survival on the leaf environment. In this report, we investigated the regulatory profile of nitrate and methylamine metabolism in the presence of multiple nitrogen sources in C. boidinii. The transcript level of nitrate reductase (Ynr1) gene was induced by nitrate and nitrite, and was not repressed by the coexistence with other nitrogen sources. In contrast, the transcript level of amine oxidase (Amo1) gene, which was induced by methylamine, was significantly repressed by the coexistence with ammonium or glutamine. In addition, we investigated the intracellular dynamics of Ynr1 during the nitrogen source shift from nitrate to other compounds. Under these tested conditions, Ynr1 was effectively transported to the vacuole via selective autophagy only during the shift from nitrate to methylamine. Moreover, Ynr1 was subject to degradation after the shift from nitrate to nitrate plus methylamine medium even though nitrate was still available. These regulatory profiles may reflect life style of nitrogen utilization in this yeast living in the phyllosphere.