EURODYNA_Environmental stress-induced dynamic modulation of chromatin structure, gene expression and nuclear architecture in yeast

All organisms possess sophisticated mechanisms to respond to environmental stress. The robust transcriptional response to osmostress in yeast works through a conserved MAP kinase signaling pathway that leads to a major reprogramming of the cell`s transcriptional state. The MAPK Hog1 acts directly at a large number of promoters to induce expression of osmostress-reponse genes, while a less well understood mechanism(s) causes coordinate down-regulation of growth-related genes, such as those encoding ribosomal proteins. Our primary aim will be to characterize and elucidate mechanisms underlying the dynamic changes in chromatin structure and modification states that accompany both the induction and down-regulation of genes following osmostress, using chromatin immunoprecipitation as our standard experimental tool. We will also employ high throughput genetic screens and advanced biochemical methods to understand how the chromatin remodeling / modification machinery interacts with global and gene-specific transcription factors and how these interactions promote dramatic changes in transcription rates. Finally, advanced cell biological methods (e.g. FRAP) will be used to characterize the dynamic nuclear trafficking and chromatin association of specific transcription factors following osmostress. These studies should yield new and important insights into mechanisms by which chromatin modification is linked to highly dynamic changes in transcription and overall nuclear architecture. (200 words)