Heme regulates the expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae of chimaeric genes containing 5′-flanking soybean leghemoglobin sequences.

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Abstract
The TM1 yeast mutant was transformed with a 2 micron‐derived plasmid (YEp24) which carries a chimaeric gene containing the Escherichia coli chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) gene fused to the 5′‐ and 3′‐flanking regions of the soybean leghemoglobin (Lb) c3 gene. Expression of the chimaeric CAT gene is controlled specifically by heme at a post‐transcriptional level, most likely by regulating the efficiencies of translation. Expression of another chimaeric gene consisting of the neomycin phosphotransferase (NPTII) gene fused to only the 5′‐flanking region of the Lbc3 gene is regulated by heme in a similar way. Thus, in yeast, heme modulates the translation of the chimaeric mRNAs through interactions with the 5′ Lbc3 non‐coding region.