Methionyl-tRNA synthetase has been purified from a yeast strain carrying the MESl structural gene on a high copy number plasmid (pFL1). The purified enzyme is a monomer of M, = 85,000 in contrast to its counterpart from Escherichia coli which is a dimer made up of identical subunits (M, = 76,000; Dardel, F., Fayat, G., and Blanquet, S . (1984) J. Bucteriol. 160,1115-1122). The yeast enzyme was ...

Nicotine adenine dinucleotide-linked primary alcohol dehydrogenase and a newly discovered secondary alcohol dehydrogenase coexist in most strains of methanol-grown yeasts. Alcohol dehydrogenases from methanol-grown yeasts oxidize (--)-2-butanol preferentially over its (+) enantiomorph. This is substantially different from alcohol dehydrogenases from bakers' yeast and horse liver.

The intercalation of thalidomide (alpha-phthalimidoglutarimide) into nucleic acids was studied by spectrophotometric titrations, displacement of known intercalators, viscosity changes of DNA solutions, and by phase partition analysis. Specific binding of thalidomide was found to DNA of various specimens (human placenta, calf thymus, salmon sperm), but not to RNA (from bakers yeast, torula yeast).

Octanoic acid inhibited ethanolic fermentation by Saccharomyces cerevisiae (bakers yeast) and the trehalose accumulation, however did not affect the endogenous degradation of trehalose. This inhibition may be explained by the binding of octanoic acid to hexokinase or other proteins of plasma membrane because they are not necessary for endogenous fermentation. The degradation of trehalose may be...