Growth-Dependent Variations in Antioxidant and Redox Enzyme Activities of Schizosaccharomyces pombe

Antioxidant and redox enzyme activities are known to be involved in the cellular responses to various stresses. Their variations were observed according to the growth cycle of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Peroxidase activity appeared to be notably higher in the early exponential phase than in the mid-exponential and stationary phases. However, catalase activity showed a variation pattern resembling the growth curve. Glutathione S-transferase activity was higher in the early exponential and late stationary phases. Activities of the two redox enzymes, thioredoxin and thioltransferase (glutaredoxin), were high in the stationary phase. However, their activities appeared to increase from the early exponential to mid-exponential phase. Total glutathione content had a varying pattern similar to that of thioredoxin and thioltransferase. However, its content in the early exponential phase was high. These results propose that antioxidant and redox enzymes tested are also involved in the mechanism of cell growth.