Characterization of the alternative oxidase protein in the yeast Hansenula anomala.

The cyanide-resistant respiratory pathway is induced by respiratory inhibitors in the yeast Hansenula anomala. A monoclonal antibody against the alternative oxidase in the higher plant Sauromatum guttatum cross-reacted with a 36-kDa mitochondrial protein induced by antimycin A in H. anomala and with a protein encoded by a cDNA which was previously cloned for an antimycin A-inducible mRNA in the yeast. There was a similarity in the amino acid sequence between the cDNA-encoded protein and the plant alternative oxidase protein. We propose that the 36-kDa mitochondrial protein encoded by the cDNA is a component of alternative oxidase in H. anomala.