Vol. 12, Issue 12, 4044-4053, December 2001

Localization of Fission Yeast Type II Myosin, Myo2, to the Cytokinetic Actin Ring Is Regulated by Phosphorylation of a C-Terminal Coiled-Coil Domain and Requires a Functional Septation Initiation Network

Daniel P. Mulvihill, Caroline Barretto,^* and Jeremy S. Hyams

Department of Biology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom

Myo2 truncations fused to green fluorescent protein (GFP) defined a C-terminal domain essential for the localization of Myo2 to the cytokinetic actin ring (CAR). The localization domain contained two predicted phosphorylation sites. Mutation of serine 1518 to alanine (S¹⁵¹⁸A) abolished Myo2 localization, whereas Myo2 with a glutamic acid at this position (S¹⁵¹⁸E) localized to the CAR. GFP-Myo2 formed rings in the septation initiation kinase (SIN) mutant cdc7-24 at 25°C but not at 36°C. GFP-Myo2S¹⁵¹⁸E rings persisted at 36°C in cdc7-24 but not in another SIN kinase mutant, sid2-250. To further examine the relationship between Myo2 and the SIN pathway, the chromosomal copy of myo2⁺ was fused to GFP (strain myo2-gc). Myo2 ring formation was abolished in the double mutants myo2-gc cdc7.24 and myo2-gc sid2-250 at the restrictive temperature. In contrast, activation of the SIN pathway in the double mutant myo2-gc cdc16-116 resulted in the formation of Myo2 rings which subsequently collapsed at 36°C. We conclude that the SIN pathway that controls septation in fission yeast also regulates Myo2 ring formation and contraction. Cdc7 and Sid2 are involved in ring formation, in the case of Cdc7 by phosphorylation of a single serine residue in the Myo2 tail. Other kinases and/or phosphatases may control ring contraction.