SURVEY AND SUMMARY: Saccharomyces cerevisiae basic helix–loop–helix proteins regulate diverse biological processes

Basic helix–loop–helix (bHLH) proteins are among the most well studied and functionally important regulatory proteins in all eukaryotes. The HLH domain dictates dimerization to create homo- and heterodimers. Dimerization juxtaposes the basic regions of the two monomers to create a DNA interaction surface that recognizes the consensus sequence called the E-box, 5′-CANNTG-3′. Several bHLH proteins have been identified in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae using traditional genetic methodologies. These proteins regulate diverse biological pathways. The completed sequence of the yeast genome, combined with novel methodologies allowing whole-genome expression studies, now offers a unique opportunity to study the function of these bHLH proteins. It is the purpose of this review to summarize the current knowledge of bHLH protein function in yeast.