Autophagy-related genes genetically interact with Pmk1 MAPK signaling in fission yeast

Apart from the highly conserved role in the cellular degradation process, autophagy also appears to play a key role in cellular proliferation. Here, we describe the genetic interaction of autophagy-related genes and Pmk1 MAPK signaling in fission yeast. atg1 deletion cells (Δ atg1 ) exhibit the vic (viable in the presence of immunosuppressant and Cl (-) ) phenotype, indicative of Pmk1 signaling inhibition. Moreover, the Δ atg1 Δ pmk1 double mutant resembles the single Δ pmk1 mutant, suggesting that Atg1 functions in the Pmk1 pathway. In addition, the growth defect induced by overexpression of Pck2, an upstream activator of Pmk1 MAPK was alleviated by the deletion of atg1 (+) . Finally, the deletion of autophagy-related genes recapitulates Pmk1 MAPK signaling inhibition. Our data suggest a novel role for autophagy in MAPK signaling regulation.