Reference: Juarez-Contreras I, et al. (2025) Structural dissection of ergosterol metabolism reveals a pathway optimized for membrane phase separation. Sci Adv 11(17):eadu7190

Reference Help

Abstract


Sterols are among the most abundant lipids in eukaryotic cells yet are synthesized through notoriously long metabolic pathways. It has been proposed that the molecular evolution of such pathways must have required each step to increase the capacity of its product to condense and order phospholipids. Here, we carry out a systematic analysis of the ergosterol pathway that leverages the yeast vacuole's capacity to phase separate into ordered membrane domains. In the post-synthetic steps specific to ergosterol biosynthesis, we find that successive modifications act to oscillate ordering capacity, settling on a level that supports phase separation while retaining fluidity of the resulting domains. Simulations carried out with each intermediate showed how conformers in the sterol's alkyl tail are capable of modulating long-range ordering of phospholipids, which could underlie changes in phase behavior. Our results indicate that the complexity of sterol metabolism could have resulted from the need to balance lipid interactions required for membrane organization.

Reference Type
Journal Article
Authors
Juarez-Contreras I, Lopes LJS, Holt J, Yu-Liao L, O'Shea K, Ruiz-Ruiz J, Sodt A, Budin I
Primary Lit For
Additional Lit For
Review For

Gene Ontology Annotations


Increase the total number of rows showing on this page using the pull-down located below the table, or use the page scroll at the table's top right to browse through the table's pages; use the arrows to the right of a column header to sort by that column; filter the table using the "Filter" box at the top of the table.

Gene/Complex Qualifier Gene Ontology Term Aspect Annotation Extension Evidence Method Source Assigned On Reference

Phenotype Annotations


Increase the total number of rows showing on this page using the pull-down located below the table, or use the page scroll at the table's top right to browse through the table's pages; use the arrows to the right of a column header to sort by that column; filter the table using the "Filter" box at the top of the table; click on the small "i" buttons located within a cell for an annotation to view further details.

Gene Phenotype Experiment Type Mutant Information Strain Background Chemical Details Reference

Disease Annotations


Increase the total number of rows showing on this page using the pull-down located below the table, or use the page scroll at the table's top right to browse through the table's pages; use the arrows to the right of a column header to sort by that column; filter the table using the "Filter" box at the top of the table.

Gene Disease Ontology Term Qualifier Evidence Method Source Assigned On Reference

Regulation Annotations


Increase the total number of rows displayed on this page using the pull-down located below the table, or use the page scroll at the table's top right to browse through the table's pages; use the arrows to the right of a column header to sort by that column; to filter the table by a specific experiment type, type a keyword into the Filter box (for example, “microarray”); download this table as a .txt file using the Download button or click Analyze to further view and analyze the list of target genes using GO Term Finder, GO Slim Mapper, or SPELL.

Regulator Target Direction Regulation Of Happens During Method Evidence

Post-translational Modifications


Increase the total number of rows showing on this page by using the pull-down located below the table, or use the page scroll at the table's top right to browse through its pages; use the arrows to the right of a column header to sort by that column; filter the table using the "Filter" box at the top of the table.

Site Modification Modifier Reference

Interaction Annotations


Genetic Interactions

Increase the total number of rows showing on this page by using the pull-down located below the table, or use the page scroll at the table's top right to browse through the table's pages; use the arrows to the right of a column header to sort by that column; filter the table using the "Filter" box at the top of the table; click on the small "i" buttons located within a cell for an annotation to view further details about experiment type and any other genes involved in the interaction.

Interactor Interactor Allele Assay Annotation Action Phenotype SGA score P-value Source Reference

Physical Interactions

Increase the total number of rows showing on this page by using the pull-down located below the table, or use the page scroll at the table's top right to browse through the table's pages; use the arrows to the right of a column header to sort by that column; filter the table using the "Filter" box at the top of the table; click on the small "i" buttons located within a cell for an annotation to view further details about experiment type and any other genes involved in the interaction.

Interactor Interactor Assay Annotation Action Modification Source Reference

Functional Complementation Annotations


Increase the total number of rows showing on this page by using the pull-down located below the table, or use the page scroll at the table's top right to browse through its pages; use the arrows to the right of a column header to sort by that column; filter the table using the "Filter" box at the top of the table.

Gene Species Gene ID Strain background Direction Details Source Reference