Role of thioredoxins in the response of Saccharomyces cerevisiae to oxidative stress induced by hydroperoxides.

Glutaredoxins and thioredoxins are highly conserved, small, heat-stable oxidoreductases. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae contains two gene pairs encoding cytoplasmic glutaredoxins (GRX1, GRX2) and thioredoxins (TRX1, TRX2), and we have used multiple mutants to determine their roles in mediating resistance to oxidative stress caused by hydroperoxides. Our data indicate that TRX2 plays the predominant role, as mutants lacking TRX2 are hypersensitive, and mutants containing TRX2 are resistant to these oxidants.

The yeast glutaredoxins are active as glutathione peroxidases.

The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae contains two glutaredoxins, encoded by GRX1 and GRX2, which are active as glutathione-dependent oxidoreductases. Our studies show that changes in the levels of glutaredoxins affect the resistance of yeast cells to oxidative stress induced by hydroperoxides. Elevating the gene dosage of GRX1 or GRX2 increases resistance to hydroperoxides including hydrogen peroxide, tert-butyl hydroperoxide and cumene hydroperoxide.