The wtf4 meiotic driver utilizes controlled protein aggregation to generate selective cell death

Abstract

Meiotic drivers are parasitic loci that force their own transmission into greater than half of the offspring of a heterozygote. Many drivers have been identified, but their molecular mechanisms are largely unknown. The <i>wtf4</i> gene is a meiotic driver in <i>Schizosaccharomyces pombe</i> that uses a poison-antidote mechanism to selectively kill meiotic products (spores) that do not inherit <i>wtf4</i>. Here, we show that the Wtf4 proteins can function outside of gametogenesis and in a distantly related species, <i>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</i>. The Wtf4^poison protein forms dispersed, toxic aggregates. The Wtf4^antidote can co-assemble with the Wtf4^poison and promote its trafficking to vacuoles. We show that neutralization of the Wtf4^poison requires both co-assembly with the Wtf4^antidote and aggregate trafficking, as mutations that disrupt either of these processes result in cell death in the presence of the Wtf4 proteins. This work reveals that <i>wtf</i> parasites can exploit protein aggregate management pathways to selectively destroy spores.