Aegerolysins are proteins that are mainly present bacteria and fungi, and are also found in some plants and viruses. Their biological role is not known precisely, but it is predicted that they could play a role in processes such as modulation of bacterial sporulation, virulence and fructification in fungi. The basic feature of aegerolysins is that they bind to and recognize specific lipids, lipid domains or lipid mixtures in living cell membranes and in artificial lipid systems. The proteins ostreolysin A (OlyA) and nigerolysin A2 (NigA2) are members of the aegerolysin protein group. As part of the master's thesis, we wanted to express these two aegerolysins in yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells and to investigate whether their expression affects the accumulation of neutral lipids. The genes were expressed by using the plasmid pYES2 that contains an inducible GAL1 promoter. The expression of recombinant proteins was induced by galactose, and the presence of recombinant proteins was investigated by dot application of total yeast proteins to a polyvinylidene fluoride membrane. The recombinant cells were stained with Nile red dye and imaged using a fluorescence microscope. By comparing representative fluorescence images of S. cerevisiae with empty plasmid (negative control) and recombinant plasmids, we suggest that aegerolysins OlyA and NigA2 induce the accumulation of lipid droplets in baker yeast cells.
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