The ability to rapidly assess chromosome instability (CIN) has enabled profiling of most yeast genes for potential effects on genome stability. The A-like faker (ALF) assay is one of several qualitative and quantitative marker loss assays that indirectly measure loss or conversion of genetic material using a counterselection step. The ALF assay relies on the ability to count spurious mating events that occur upon loss of the MATα locus of haploid Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains. Here, we describe the deployment of the ALF assay for both rapid and simple qualitative, and more in-depth quantitative analysis allowing determination of absolute ALF frequencies.
Keywords: A-like faker; Aneuploidy; Chromosome instability; Gene conversion; Genome instability; Gross chromosomal rearrangement; Marker loss.