Control of the G1-G0 transition and G0 protein synthesis by cyclic AMP in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

When the cyr1-1 cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which require cyclic AMP (cAMP) for growth, were starved for cAMP, cell division was arrested at the G1 state of the mitotic cell cycle and the cells entered the resting state (G0) also observed in wild-type cells transferred to sulfur-free medium. The level of cAMP in wild-type cells decreased rapidly when the cells were starved for sulfur and subsequently increased following its addition. The cyr1-1 cells starved for cAMP preferentially synthesized nine G0 proteins. The synthesis of these G0 proteins in the sulfur-starved cells was repressed by the addition of cAMP. The RAS2val9 or bcy1 cells, which produced an elevated level of cAMP or cAMP-independent protein kinase, did not synthesize the G0 proteins under the sulfur-starved condition. The results suggest that cAMP plays a role in the transition between the proliferating state and G0 state.