cytoplasmic stress granule

GO:0010494 · Ribonucleoprotein · Other · Proposed

A dense aggregation in the cytosol composed of proteins and RNAs that appear when the cell is under stress. [GO:0010494]

Synonyms: cytoplasmic mRNP granule; stress granule

UniProt location names: UniProt Consortium, CC BY 4.0. Reference label and route sources.

Components

Component	Type	Part of / acts on	Grounding	Genes	Essential	Role
stalled stress-granule mRNA cargo	Rna	part of	Reviewed label only (reviewed name; no accession asserted)		UNKNOWN	Translationally stalled mRNAs that concentrate in cytoplasmic stress granules under glucose deprivation. `DOI:10.1083/jcb.200807043` Buchan, Muhlrad and Parker 2008 analyzed yeast stress granules formed by nontranslating mRNPs under glucose deprivation.
Pab1/Pub1/Pbp1 stress-granule RNA-binding markers	Protein	part of	Reviewed label only (reviewed name; no accession asserted)	PAB1, PUB1, PBP1	UNKNOWN	Pab1 and Pub1 mark glucose-deprivation stress granules, while Pub1 and Pbp1 promote visible granule assembly. `DOI:10.1083/jcb.200807043` Buchan, Muhlrad and Parker 2008 used Pab1 and Pub1 as yeast stress-granule markers and linked Pub1 and Pbp1 to stress-granule assembly. `DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0010006` Swisher and Parker 2010 assayed Pbp1, Pbp4, Lsm12, Dhh1 and Pab1 localization and effects on Saccharomyces stress granules.
eIF3/40S translation-initiation cohort	Other	part of	Reviewed label only (reviewed name; no accession asserted)	TIF32	UNKNOWN	Translation-initiation components, including eIF3a/Tif32 and 40S small ribosomal subunits, that mark robust heat-shock stress granules in budding yeast. `DOI:10.1242/jcs.045104` Grousl et al. 2009 showed that robust heat-shock stress granules in Saccharomyces contain eIF3 and small but not large ribosomal subunits.

Taxonomic distribution

NCBITaxon:4932 Saccharomyces cerevisiae — VARIABLE: Budding yeast forms cytoplasmic stress granules under glucose-deprivation conditions. [DOI:10.1083/jcb.200807043]

Canonical examples

NCBITaxon:4932 Saccharomyces cerevisiae — Budding-yeast model in which Pab1/Pub1-marked cytoplasmic stress granules were connected to P-body-dependent glucose-deprivation assembly. [DOI:10.1083/jcb.200807043]

Functions

mRNP triage during stress — Cytoplasmic stress granules concentrate nontranslating mRNPs and translation-initiation components when yeast cells encounter glucose deprivation or heat shock.
- DOI:10.1083/jcb.200807043 Buchan, Muhlrad and Parker 2008 connected yeast stress granules to remodeling of mRNPs that had accumulated in preexisting P-bodies.
- DOI:10.1242/jcs.045104 Grousl et al. 2009 found that robust heat shock induces Saccharomyces stress granules with eIF3 and 40S ribosomal subunit markers.

Mechanism graphs

Yeast mRNPs and RNA-binding proteins assemble stress granules (ASSEMBLY)

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, stalled mRNP cargo localizes to cytoplasmic stress granules during glucose deprivation, Pab1/Pub1/Pbp1 RNA-binding markers or inputs support visible granule assembly, and heat-shock-localized eIF3/40S translation-initiation components concentrate in cytoplasmic stress granules, while P-bodies promote stress-granule assembly during glucose deprivation.

Subject	Predicate	Object	Evidence
stalled stress-granule mRNA cargo	accumulates in	cytoplasmic stress granule	`DOI:10.1083/jcb.200807043` Buchan, Muhlrad and Parker 2008 characterized yeast stress granules formed from nontranslating mRNPs.
Pab1/Pub1/Pbp1 stress-granule RNA-binding markers	supports assembly of	cytoplasmic stress granule	`DOI:10.1083/jcb.200807043` Buchan, Muhlrad and Parker 2008 linked Pub1 and Pbp1 to yeast stress-granule assembly. `DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0010006` Swisher and Parker 2010 tested localization and assembly effects of Pbp1-interacting stress-granule proteins.
eIF3/40S translation-initiation cohort	localizes to	cytoplasmic stress granule	`DOI:10.1242/jcs.045104` Grousl et al. 2009 observed eIF3 and 40S ribosomal subunits in robust heat-shock yeast stress granules.
P-body	promotes assembly of	cytoplasmic stress granule	`DOI:10.1083/jcb.200807043` Buchan, Muhlrad and Parker 2008 found that P-body assembly was required for efficient yeast stress-granule assembly during glucose deprivation.

Discussions

CURATION_TODO (OPEN): Resolve exact component groundings and stress-condition-specific boundaries for yeast glucose-deprivation and robust-heat-shock stress granules. This first record groups Saccharomyces stress-granule mRNAs, RNA-binding proteins and translation-initiation markers by experimentally assayed stress-granule residency rather than guessing exact family accessions or asserting that glucose deprivation and heat-shock foci have identical composition.

Evidence

GO:0010494 Gene Ontology cellular-component term for cytoplasmic stress granule.
GO:0034063 Gene Ontology biological-process term for cytoplasmic stress granule assembly.
DOI:10.1083/jcb.200807043 Buchan, Muhlrad and Parker 2008, P bodies promote stress granule assembly in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Journal of Cell Biology.
DOI:10.1242/jcs.045104 Grousl et al. 2009, Robust heat shock induces eIF2alpha-phosphorylation-independent assembly of stress granules containing eIF3 and 40S ribosomal subunits in budding yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Journal of Cell Science.
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0010006 Swisher and Parker 2010, Localization to, and effects of Pbp1, Pbp4, Lsm12, Dhh1, and Pab1 on stress granules in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, PLOS ONE.

Curation history

2026-09-12T00:10:41Z codex · CREATED_RECORD — Scaffolded by scripts/new_record.py
2026-09-12T00:11:36Z codex · EXPANDED_RECORD — Added exact GO stress-granule synonymy, label-only yeast mRNA, Pab1/Pub1/Pbp1 and eIF3/40S component cohorts, Saccharomyces distribution and example curation, mRNP-triage function evidence, GO/DOI evidence, a yeast stress-granule assembly graph and a component-boundary TODO.
2026-09-12T00:12:12Z codex · TIGHTENED_EVIDENCE_SCOPE — Narrowed the Saccharomyces taxonomic distribution and canonical example notes to the Buchan 2008 glucose-deprivation evidence they cite, leaving robust heat-shock claims attached to Grousl 2009 component and graph evidence.
2026-09-12T00:17:43Z codex · RESOLVED_REVIEW — Resolved #551 by removing the heat-shock Grousl citation from the glucose-deprivation mRNA cargo component, and resolved #552 by renaming the Pab1/Pub1/Pbp1 cohort as RNA-binding markers and narrowing Pab1 to a marker role.

Source: data/structures/ribonucleoprotein/cytoplasmic_stress_granule.yaml