Mechanism of 2-deoxy-D-glucose inhibition of cell-wall polysaccharide and glycoprotein biosyntheses in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The mechanism of inhibition by 2-deoxy-D-glucose of the synthesis of yeast wall polysaccharides and glycoproteins was investigated in Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells and protoplasts. The extent of the inhibition of mannan and glucan synthesis was found to be dependent on whether glucose or mannose was used as the carbon source in the medium. During growth on glucose, 2-deoxy-D-glucose inhibited more intensively mannan than glucan formation. Biosynthesis of wall glucan was strongly suppressed in mannose medium. Selective incorporation of 2-deoxy-D-glucose occurred into that polysaccharide, synthesis of which was more inhibited under given conditions. Suggestive evidence has been obtained that the decisive factor for the proportion of glucan and mannan in the walls is the direction of glucose 6-phosphate/mannose 6-phosphate interconversion dependent on the exogeneous hexose. No close correlation was found between the inhibition of mannan synthesis and the appearance of the mannan-protein enzymes invertase and acid phosphatase. Effect of 2-deoxy-D-glucose was therefore investigated on the parallel synthesis of protein, mannan and several extracellular and intracellular enzymes in protoplasts grown on glucose and mannose. The results obtained pointed out that the hindrance of the secretion of mannan-protein enzymes is of a complex nature and related more to the inhibition of synthesis of the protein moiety than to the inhibition of glycosylation. Synthesis of several enzymes was found to be a subject of a metabolic control by 2-deoxy-D-glucose or its metabolites.