Analysis of ECM14 function by synthetic lethal assay

The genome of the yeast S. cerevisiae encodes only one member of the M14 MCP family, a pseudoenzyme named Ecm14 proposed to function in the extracellular matrix. In order to determine the function of Ecm14 using an unbiased screen, we undertook a synthetic lethal assay. Approximately 27,000 yeast colonies were screened; only twenty-two putative synthetic lethals were identified. Analysis by complementation and whole-genome sequencing showed many to be synthetic lethal with auxotrophic marker genes and synthetic lethality due to multiple mutations, suggesting that there are few, if any, single S. cerevisiae genes that present synthetic lethal interactions with ecm14.