Selection-induced mutations occur in yeast

Abstract

Selection-induced mutations are nonrandom mutations that occur as specific and direct responses to environmental challenges and primarily in nondividing cells under conditions of intense prolonged selection. Selection-induced mutations have been shown to occur at six loci in Escherichia coli, but their existence has not previously been demonstrated in any eukaryotic organism. Here it is shown that selection-induced mutations occur at the HIS4 locus in the eukaryotic microorganism Saccharomyces cerevisiae.