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Genome-Wide Transposon Mutagenesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Candida albicans

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Book cover Strain Engineering

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 765))

Abstract

Transposon mutagenesis is an effective method for generating large sets of random mutations in target DNA, with applicability toward numerous types of genetic screens in prokaryotes, single-celled eukaryotes, and metazoans alike. Relative to methods of random mutagenesis by chemical/UV treatment, transposon insertions can be easily identified in mutants with phenotypes of interest. The construction of transposon insertion mutants is also less labor-intensive on a genome-wide scale than methods for targeted gene replacement, although transposon insertions are not precisely targeted to a specific residue, and thus coverage of the target DNA can be problematic. The collective advantages of transposon mutagenesis have been well demonstrated in studies of the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the related pathogenic yeast Candida albicans, as transposon mutagenesis has been used extensively for phenotypic screens in both yeasts. Consequently, we present here protocols for the generation and utilization of transposon-insertion DNA libraries in S. cerevisiae and C. albicans. Specifically, we present methods for the large-scale introduction of transposon insertion alleles in a desired strain of S. cerevisiae. Methods are also presented for transposon mutagenesis of C. albicans, encompassing both the construction of the plasmid-based transposon-mutagenized DNA library and its introduction into a desired strain of Candida. In total, these methods provide the necessary information to implement transposon mutagenesis in yeast, enabling the construction of large sets of identifiable gene disruption mutations, with particular utility for phenotypic screening in nonstandard genetic backgrounds.

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Acknowledgments

Research in the Kumar laboratory was supported by grant RSG-06-179-01-MBC from the American Cancer Society and National Institutes of Health grant 1R21A1084539-01.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Life Sciences Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Tao Xu, Nikë Bharucha & Anuj Kumar

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  1. Tao Xu
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  2. Nikë Bharucha
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  3. Anuj Kumar
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Anuj Kumar .

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  1. Nature Technology Corporation, Innovation Drive 4701, Lincoln, 68521, Nebraska, USA

    James A. Williams

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Xu, T., Bharucha, N., Kumar, A. (2011). Genome-Wide Transposon Mutagenesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Candida albicans . In: Williams, J. (eds) Strain Engineering. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 765. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-197-0_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-197-0_13

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-61779-196-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-61779-197-0

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