Regulated expression of a human interferon gene in yeast: control by phosphate concentration or temperature.

The promoter/regulator region from the yeast repressible acid phosphatase gene was used to construct a vector for the regulated expression of cloned genes in yeast. The gene for human leukocyte interferon was inserted into this vector. Yeast cells transformed with the resulting plasmid produced significant amounts of interferon only when grown in medium lacking inorganic phosphate. Mutants in two acid phosphatase regulatory genes (coding for a defective repressor and a temperature-sensitive positive regulator) were used to develop a yeast strain that grew well at a high temperature (35 degrees C) but produced interferon only at a low temperature (23 degrees C), independent of phosphate concentration.