The Uba2 and Ufd1 proteins of Saccharomyces cerevisiae interact with poly(A) polymerase and affect the polyadenylation activity of cell extracts.

Poly(A) polymerase is responsible for the addition of the adenylate tail to the 3' ends of mRNA. Using the two-hybrid system we have identified two proteins which interact specifically with the Saccharomyces cerevisiae poly(A) polymerase, Pap1. Uba2 is a homolog of ubiquitin-activating (E1) enzymes and Ufd1 is a protein whose function is probably also linked to the ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation pathway. These two proteins interact with Pap1 and with each other, but not with eight other target proteins which were tested in the two-hybrid system. The last 115 amino acids of Uba2, which contains an 82-amino acid region not present in previously characterized E1 enzymes, is sufficient for the interaction with Pap1. Both Uba2 and Ufd1 can be co-immunoprecipitated from extracts with Pap1, confirming in vitro the interaction identified by two-hybrid analysis. Depletion of Uba2 from cells produces extracts which polyadenylate precursor RNA with increased efficiency compared to extracts from nondepleted cells, while depletion of Ufd1 yields extracts which are defective in processing. These two proteins are not components of polyadenylation factors, and instead may have a role in regulating poly(A) polymerase activity.