Binding of the glucose-dependent Mig1p repressor to the GAL1 and GAL4 promoters in vivo: Regulation by glucose and chromatin structure

Abstract

Binding of the MIG1 repressor to the glucose-repressible GAL1 and GAL4 promoters was analyzed in vivo by cyclobutane dimer footprinting in two yeast strains that show different glucose repression responses. Mig1p binding to the two promoters in both strains was glucose-induced. In cells subject to rapid and stringent glucose repression (S288c), long-term Mig1p binding in glucose-grown cells was inhibited by the formation of a competing chromatin structure. Under conditions where glucose repression was only partially effective (gal80- or low glucose), the chromatin structure did not form and long-term Mig1p binding was observed. The same long-term binding of Mig1p was seen in cells of a different strain (W303A) that shows only partial glucose repression of the GAL1 promoter. We conclude from these experiments that Mig1p binding to glucose-repressed promoters is glucose-dependent but transient. We suggest that Mig1p functions at an early step in repression, but is not required to maintain the repressed state.