Effects of Varying Concentrations of Resveratrol on Gene Expression in S. cerevisiae

Resveratrol is a water-soluble, natural biological compound that has garnered attention for its demonstrated benefits including promoting longevity and preventing cancerous tumorogenesis in the model organism Saacharomyces cerevisiae. The current study examines two genes: Sir2 and NPR2, which promote longevity and cancer prevention respectively. Both genes possess human homologs: Sir2 to human SIRT1, and NPR2 to human NPRL2. If resveratrol causes an upregulation in these genes in yeast, it can be inferred that resveratrol will induce expression in their homologs, extending resveratrol’s benefits to other organisms, notably humans. Yeast cells were exposed to varying concentrations of resveratrol (5-200 μM) to determine the concentration of resveratrol optimal for Sir2/NPR2 expression. After exposure, yeast cells were harvested, RNA extracted, cDNA synthesis performed, and finally RT-PCR was performed to determine if gene expression resulting from resveratrol exposure occurred. The results from this study showed increased expression in Sir2 across the range of resveratrol concentrations and neutral expression in NPR2. These results show that increased resveratrol concentrations correlate with higher Sir2 expression, implicating resveratrol as a promoter for longevity. However, resveratrol seemed to have a neutral effect NPR2. Future studies are necessary to determine if resveratrol has an effect on NPR2 expression.