The accurate partitioning of the genome during mitosis requires the precise regulation of the connection between chromosomes and the mitotic spindle. This fundamental interaction is mediated by the kinetochore, a specialized protein complex that assembles on centromeric DNA and facilitates the capture of dynamic spindle microtubules that arise from opposite poles (for reviews, see references
5,
13, and
17). Bipolar attachments promote accurate chromosome segregation by ensuring that the spindle forces on the replicated chromosomes (sister chromatids) are directed toward opposite sides of the cell. Once all chromosomes make proper bipolar attachments, the cell transitions to anaphase where sister chromatids are pulled to opposite poles. Failure to achieve bipolar attachments results in chromosome missegregation, and this aneuploid state predisposes multicellular organisms to the development of a variety of diseases. To prevent the premature segregation of improperly attached chromosomes, the spindle checkpoint monitors kinetochore-microtubule interactions and delays the metaphase to anaphase transition until bipolar attachments are achieved (for a review, see reference
42).
An important regulator of both kinetochore attachment and the spindle checkpoint is the conserved Ipl1/Aurora B protein kinase, a component of the chromosomal passenger complex that localizes to kinetochores, spindles, and the spindle midzone and midbody (for reviews, see references
25 and
69). Ipl1/Aurora B facilitates proper attachments by destabilizing inappropriate kinetochore-microtubule interactions, such as monopolar attachments in which kinetochores bind microtubules emanating from the same pole (
4,
12,
39,
54,
63). Despite the presence of improper attachments that should activate the spindle checkpoint, cells with impaired Ipl1/Aurora B function proceed through the cell cycle (
3,
10,
19,
26,
40). Ipl1 is thought to promote proper chromosome segregation, in part, by phosphorylating components of the Dam1/DASH/DDD complex, an essential regulator of kinetochore-microtubule interactions and microtubule function (
15,
16,
34,
35,
43,
44,
48,
59,
73).
Ipl1 activity is opposed by Glc7, the sole essential protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) catalytic subunit in budding yeast (
21,
22,
32,
58,
76). Glc7 regulates numerous cellular processes including mitosis, meiosis, glycogen and sugar metabolism, transcription, translation, and mRNA processing (for a review, see reference
11). The regulation of these processes is guided by Glc7 interactions with specific regulatory subunits that target the phosphatase to appropriate substrates. Many
glc7 alleles cause cells to arrest in mitosis (
1,
6,
29,
46), suggesting that Glc7 substrates must be dephosphorylated to allow cell cycle progression. Furthermore, impairing Glc7 function suppresses the
ipl1 temperature-sensitive growth defect and restores the phosphorylation of the Ipl1 targets Ndc10 and histone H3, indicating that Glc7 antagonizes Ipl1-mediated phosphorylation (
21,
22,
32,
58). In addition, genetic interactions between
glc7 mutants and mutants that alter the phosphorylation status of the Ipl1 substrate Dam1 also support this idea (
15,
76). Consistent with this, some
glc7 mutants activate the spindle checkpoint and exhibit reduced kinetochore binding to microtubules in vitro (
7,
58). Despite these observations, the precise relationship between the kinase and phosphatase is not well understood, and Glc7 regulation of Ipl1 function has not been examined.
Here, we further explore the relationship between Ipl1 and Glc7. We found that Glc7 does not appear to directly modulate Ipl1 and likely opposes the essential functions of Ipl1 by dephosphorylating common substrates. We identified proteins that physically interact with Glc7 as dosage suppressors of an ipl1 mutant and found that two of these proteins, Gip3 and Gip4, are previously unidentified Glc7 regulatory subunits. Consistent with this, phosphorylation of the essential Ipl1 substrate, Dam1, is restored in ipl1 mutant cells when Glc7 is relocalized out of the nucleus by Gip3 and Gip4 overexpression. We propose that Glc7 regulatory subunits restore the kinase/phosphatase balance in ipl1 mutants by titrating Glc7 away from essential mitotic substrates.