Hansenula polymorpha Pex37 is a peroxisomal membrane protein required for organelle fission and segregation

Here, we describe a novel peroxin, Pex37, in the yeast Hansenula polymorpha. H. polymorpha Pex37 is a peroxisomal membrane protein, which belongs to a protein family that includes, among others, the Neurospora crassa Woronin body protein Wsc, the human peroxisomal membrane protein PXMP2, the Saccharomyces cerevisiae mitochondrial inner membrane protein Sym1, and its mammalian homologue MPV17. We show that deletion of H. polymorpha PEX37 does not appear to have a significant effect on peroxisome biogenesis or proliferation in cells grown at peroxisome-inducing growth conditions (methanol). However, the absence of Pex37 results in a reduction in peroxisome numbers and a defect in peroxisome segregation in cells grown at peroxisome-repressing conditions (glucose). Conversely, overproduction of Pex37 in glucose-grown cells results in an increase in peroxisome numbers in conjunction with a decrease in their size. The increase in numbers in PEX37-overexpressing cells depends on the dynamin-related protein Dnm1. Together our data suggest that Pex37 is involved in peroxisome fission in glucose-grown cells. Introduction of human PXMP2 in H. polymorpha pex37 cells partially restored the peroxisomal phenotype, indicating that PXMP2 represents a functional homologue of Pex37. H.polymorpha pex37 cells did not show aberrant growth on any of the tested carbon and nitrogen sources that are metabolized by peroxisomal enzymes, suggesting that Pex37 may not fulfill an essential function in transport of these substrates or compounds required for their metabolism across the peroxisomal membrane.