IfkA, a presumptive eIF2α kinase of Dictyostelium, is required for proper timing of aggregation and regulation of mound size

BACKGROUND: The transition from growth to development in Dictyostelium is initiated by amino acid starvation of growing amobae. In other eukaryotes, a key sensor of amino acid starvation and mediator of the resulting physiological responses is the GCN2 protein, an eIF2α kinase. GCN2 downregulates the initiation of translation of bulk mRNA and enhances translation of specific mRNAs by phosphorylating the translation initiation factor eIF2α. Two eIF2α kinases were identified in Dictyostelium and studied herein. RESULTS: Neither of the eIF2α kinases appeared to be involved in sensing amino acid starvation to initiate development. However, one of the kinases, IfkA, was shown to phosphorylate eIF2α from 1 to 7 hours after the onset of development, resulting in a shift from polysomes to free ribosomes for bulk mRNA. In the absence of the eIF2α phosphorylation, ifkA null cells aggregated earlier than normal and formed mounds and ultimately fruiting bodies that were larger than normal. The early aggregation phenotype in ifkA null cells reflected an apparent, earlier than normal establishment of the cAMP pulsing system. The large mound phenotype resulted from a reduced extracellular level of Countin, a component of the counting factor that regulates mound size. In wild type cells, phosphorylation of eIF2α by IfkA resulted in a specific stabilization and enhanced translational efficiency of countin mRNA even though reduced translation resulted for bulk mRNA. CONCLUSIONS: IfkA is an eIF2α kinase of Dictyostelium that normally phosphorylates eIF2α from 1 to 7 hours after the onset of development, or during the preaggregation phase. This results in an overall reduction in the initiation of protein synthesis during this time frame and a concomitant reduction in the number of ribosomes associated with most mRNAs. For some mRNAs, however, initiation of protein synthesis is enhanced or stabilized under the conditions of increased eIF2α phosphorylation. This includes countin mRNA.