Identification of negative regulatory genes that govern the expression of early meiotic genes in yeast

Mutations in Saccharomyces cerevisiae have been identified that derepress early meiotic genes functioning in separable pathways required for normal meiotic development. The phenotypes of these ume (unscheduled meiotic gene expression) mutations suggest that their wild-type alleles encode negative regulators acting downstream of both the cell-type and nutritional controls of meiosis. These newly defined loci do not affect either general transcription or transcription of meiotic genes expressed later in meiosis and spore formation.