Bifunctional enzyme FBPase/SBPase is essential for photoautotrophic growth in cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

From a random insertion mutant library of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, a mutant defective in photoautotrophic growth was obtained. The interrupted gene was identified to be slr2094 (fbp1), which encodes the fructose-1,6-biphosphatase (FBPase) / sedoheptulose-1,7-biphosphatase (SBPase) bifunctional enzyme (F-I). Two other independently constructed slr2094 mutants showed an identical phenotype. The FBPase activity was found to be virtually lacked in slr2094 mutant, which was sensitive to light under mixotrophic growth conditions. These results indicate that slr2094 is the only active FBPase-encoding gene in this cyanobacterium. Inactivation of photosystem II by interrupting psbB in slr2094 mutant alleviated the sensitiveness to light. This report provides the direct genetic evidence for the essential role of F-I in the photosynthesis of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803.     

Bifunctional enzyme FBPase/SBPase is essential for photoautotrophic growth in cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

From a random insertion mutant library of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, a mutant defective in photoautotrophic growth was obtained. The interrupted gene was identified to be slr2094 （fbpl）, which encodes the fructose-1,6-biphosphatase （FBPase）/sedoheptulose-1,7-biphosphatase （SBPase） bifunctional enzyme （F-I）. Two other independently constructed slr2094 mutants showed an identical phenotype. The FBPase activity was found to be virtually lacking in an slr2094 mutant, which was sensitive to light under mixotrophic growth conditions. These results indicate that slr2094 is the only active FBPase-encoding gene in this cyanobacterium. Inactivation of photosystem II by interrupting psbB in slr2094 mutant alleviated the sensitiveness to light. This report provides the direct genetic evidence for the essential role of F-I in the photosynthesis of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803.     

Role of two phosphohexomutase genes in glycogen synthesis in Synechocystis sp. PCC6803

Phosphohexomutases catalyze the interconversion between hexose-6-phosphate and hexose-l-phosphate and play important roles in polysaccharide synthesis. In Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, sl10726 is predicted to encode PGM （phosphoglucomutase）, slr1334 is predicted to encode a PGM/PMM （phosphomannomutase） bifunction enzyme. In comparison to the wild type, a sllO726-null mutant showed 3.4% PGM activity but 45%-69% glycogen content. Down-regulation of slr1334, an essential gene, by using a copper regulated promoter further decreased the PGM activity in the sllO726：：Kmr PpetE-slr1334 double mutant to 0.3% of the wild type level. However, the glycogen content was not further decreased in parallel. In vitro, recombinant Sl10726 or S1r1334 showed predicted enzyme activities. Our results indicate that a relatively high level of glycogen can be maintained in Synechocystis mutants with low levels of PGM activity. The high PGM activity in the cyanobacterium may be required for turnover of glycogen or synthesis of other polysaccharides or oligosaccharides.     

Sodium Acetate Stimulates PHB Biosynthesis in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

IntroductionA large variety of bacteria are able to synthesizepolyhydroxyalkanoic acids (PHAs) and to depositlarge amounts of these polyesters as insolubleinclusions in cytoplasm[1 ] . PHAs have attractedthe interest of the chemical industry because oftheir biodegradable properties for applications invarious technical,medical,and pharmaceuticalapplications[2 ] .Poly-β-hydroxybutyrate(PHB) isatypical PHA that is produced by heterotrophicbacteria,such as Alcaligenes eutrophus andEscherichi…     

Cloning and Characterization of the fecC Gene Necessary for Optimal Growth under Iron-Deficiency Conditions in the Cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120

The fecC gene encoding a putative iron (Ⅲ) dicitrate transporte rwas cloned from nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120, and inactivated. The mutant grows normally in medium with NO3^- , NH1^- or without combined nitrogen. But in iron-deficient medium, the mutant grows slowly. Photosynthetic properties were compared between the mutant and the wildtype strain, the content of photosynthetic pigments in the mutant is lower than that of the wild-type. The results of RT-PCR experiments show that the fecC gene is expressed under iron-deficient conditions, but is not expressed under iron-replete conditions. These results revealed that fecC gene product is required for optimal growth under iron-deficient conditions in Anabaena sp. PCC 7120.     

Molecular source of biomarkers by genetic engineering techniques

The mutant lacking ORF469 fragment inSynechocystis sp. PCC 6803 (cyanobacterium) was created by means of DNA recombination. In its genome,ORF ₄₆₉, the key DNA fragment controlling the light-independent pathway of chlorophyll biosynthesis was deleted and replaced by erythromycin resistance cassette. The operation resulted in the fact that the content of chlorophyll in mutant cells was fully controlled by illumination and two kinds of cells were harvested, one is high chlorophyll with concentration of 9.427 μg· mg⁻¹ and the other is low chlorophyll with concentration of 0.695 μg · mg¹. They were subjected to thermal simulation respectively at 300°C for 100 h. The alkanes biomarkers from pyrolysates were analyzed by GC-MS and main difference between high and low chlorophyll cells was found at their contents of isoprenoid hydrocarbons. Pr/nC₁₇ and Ph/nC₁₈ from pyrolysate of low chlorophyll cells were 0.192 and 0.216 respectively, which were about 1/3 and 1/7 of that from high chlorophyll cells. The results provide direct evidence that isoprenoid hydrocarbons such as phytane(Ph) and pristane (Pr) could be derived from chlorophyll. The lipids in algal cells would be the most important contributors to hydrocarbon production in their thermal degradation. The results also indicated that the combination of molecular biology and organic geochemistry would provide a new path to investigate the molecular sources of biomarkers.     

Combinational biosynthesis and characterization of a fluorescent 82β-phycocyanin of Spirulina platensis

To biosynthesize fluorescent Spirulina platensis (Sp)β -phycocyanin (PC) in Escherichia coli, a BLASTP search for homologs of the cpeS gene, a chromophore lyase, was performed against the Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 (S6) proteome. A highly homologous gene, slr2049, was obtained from the S6 genome. Sites 82 and 153 in -phycocyanin of Sp were modified by site-directed muta- genesis. Two recombinant expression vectors were constructed and transformed into E. coli BL21: (i) pCDF-cpcB (C153A)- slr2049-sll0583-ho1-pcyA; and (ii) pCDF-cpcB (C82I)-slr2049-sll0583-ho1-pcyA. Lyases encoded by the genes slr2049 and sll0583 catalyzed the linking of Sp 82β -PC to phycocyanobilin (PCB), and fluorescent CpcB (C153A)-PCB was generated. We present a strategy for the co-expression of multiple genes in a single expression vector to identify the function of an unknown gene. Recombinant phycobiliproteins produced on a large scale are promising fluorescent tags for diagnostics and pharmacology.     

Effects of Chlorophyll Availability on Fluorescence Components of Photosystems in the ORF469-Deletion Mutant of Cyanobacterium

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Changes in the transthylakoid proton gradient are caused by the movement of phycobilisomes in the cyanobacterium <Emphasis Type="Italic">Synechocystis</Emphasis> sp. strain PCC 6803

Phycobilisomes (PBSs) are the main accessory light-harvesting complexes in cyanobacteria and their movement between photosystems (PSs) affects cyclic and respiratory electron transport. However, it remains unclear whether the movement of PBSs between PSs also affects the transthylakoid proton gradient (ΔpH). We investigated the effect of PBS movement on ΔpH levels in a unicellular cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803, using glycinebetaine to immobilize and couple PBSs to photosystem II (PSII) or photosystem I (PSI) by applying under far-red or green light, respectively. The immobilization of PBSs at PSII inhibited decreases in ΔpH, as reflected by the slow phase of millisecond-delayed light emission (ms-DLE) that occurs during the movement of PBSs from PSII to PSI. By contrast, the immobilization of PBSs at PSI inhibited the increase in ΔpH that occurs when PBSs move from PSI to PSII. Comparison of the changes in ΔpH and electron transport caused by the movement of PBSs between PSs indicated that the changes in ΔpH were most likely caused by respiratory electron transport. This will further improve our understanding of the physiological role of PBS movement in cyanobacteria.     

Deletion of an electron donor-binding subunit of the NDH-1 complex,NdhS, results in a heat-sensitive growth phenotype in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

In cyanobacteria and higher plants, NdhS is suggested to be an electron donor-binding subunit of NADPH dehydrogenase （NDH-1） complexes and its absence impairs NDH-l-dependent cyclic electron trans- port around photosystem I （NDH-CET）. Despite significant advances in the study of NdhS during recent years, its functional role in resisting heat stress is poorly understood. Here, our results revealed that the absence of NdhS resulted in a serious heat-sensitive growth phenotype in the uni- cellular cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803. Furthermore, the rapid and significant increase in NDH-CET caused by heat treatment was completely abolished, and the repair of photosystem II under heat stress conditions was greatly impaired when compared to that of other photosynthetic apparatus in the thylakoid membrane. We therefore conclude that NdhS plays an important role in resistance to heat stress, possibly by stabilizing the electron input module of cyanobacterial NDH-1 complexes.     

封闭式光生物反应器集胞藻6803光自养和混合营养培养比较

采用封闭式光生物反应器进行了蓝藻基因工程常用宿主系统集胞藻Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803的混合营养培养,并与光自养培养进行了比较,在两种培养方式下,集胞藻6803的饱和光强基本相同,都为5000lx,当入射光强为5000lx,初始葡萄糖浓度为1．74g/L时,混合营养生长在葡萄糖消耗完（69．5h)时的藻细胞密度为1．36g/L,叶绿素浓度为20．08mg/L,能量得率为16．7％,分别为同期光自养生长的3．8倍,2．3倍和2．6倍,这表明封闭式光生物反应器混合营养培养方式在促进集胞藻6803生长和光合色素合成及提高培养过程能量得率等方面都有显著作用。     

DnaJ-like protein gene sll1384 is involved in phototaxis in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

In Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, gene sll1384 encodes a protein with a DnaJ domain at its N-terminal portion and a TPR domain at the C-terminal portion. An sll1384 mutant shows no difference from the wild type in adaptation to different temperatures, but almost completely loses its capability of phototactic movement. After complementation with sll1384, the mutant regains the phototaxis. As shown with electron microscopy, on the cell surface, mutant cells have pill that appear to be the same as that of the wild type. Also, the transformation efficiency remains unchanged in the mutant. It is postulated that Sll1384 regulates phototaxis of Synechocystis through protein-protein interaction. It is the first DnaJ-like protein gene identified in a cyanobacterium for a role in phototaxis.     

萘对铜绿微囊藻和聚球藻生长及叶绿素荧光影响的比较

为探究萘对不同粒径蓝藻的胁迫效应,采用5组不同质量浓度萘(0、0.01 mg/L、0.1 mg/L、1 mg/L、10 mg/L)分别对聚球藻(Synechococcus sp.)和铜绿微囊藻(Microcystis aeruginosa,PCC7806)进行为期7 d的处理,分析不同浓度萘处理下,藻细胞浓度、叶绿素a含量及叶绿素荧光参数的变化,探究不同浓度萘处理对2种藻的生长及生理影响。结果表明:(a)整个处理周期内,聚球藻的生长被显著抑制,其叶绿素a含量减小了3.9%~40.4%;(b)聚球藻的潜在光合作用能力、光合作用速率均有所减弱,但其耐受强光的能力有所增强,说明聚球藻对萘具有较强的敏感性;(c)萘对铜绿微囊藻生长具有显著的促进作用,增强了其潜在光合作用能力,但抑制了其细胞内叶绿素a的合成。     

海绵Pseudoceratina sp.共栖细菌多样性及其抑制甘蔗鞭黑粉菌活性研究

【目的】探讨广西斜阳岛附近海域海绵共附生细菌的多样性,并筛选对甘蔗鞭黑粉菌有抑制作用的活性物质,为发现潜在的细菌新物种及开发农用生防菌肥奠定基础。【方法】采用稀释涂布法,通过6种复合营养分离培养基,从海绵Pseudoceratina sp.中分离可培养的共附生细菌。采取细菌形态学观察去除冗余,通过PCR扩增菌株的16SrRNA基因序列,并通过构建系统发育树分析物种多样性。采用牛津杯法进行抑制甘蔗鞭黑粉菌活性筛选实验。【结果】从海绵Pseudoceratina sp.中共分离到可培养细菌54株,经16SrRNA基因序列对比后,获得24株细菌,隶属于13科14属。其中,菌株BGMRC 2118与已发表有效菌株的16SrRNA基因序列的最高相似率为96.46%,可能为潜在新种。抑菌筛选实验结果显示,有8株细菌的发酵粗提物对甘蔗鞭黑粉菌具有很强的抑菌活性。【结论】广西斜阳岛附近海域中海绵共附生细菌具有较高的物种多样性,蕴藏着丰富的新物种资源,富含生物活性菌株。     

Effect of Cl- on photosynthetic bicarbonate uptake in two cyanobacteria Microcystis aeruginosa and Synechocystis PCC6803

Photosynthetic inorganic carbon utilization was investigated in two cyanobacteria Microcystis aeruginosa and Synechocystis PCC6803 grown in standing culture. Photosynthetic rates for the two algae reached about 10 times the theoretical CO₂ supply rate at low dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) of 100 μmol/L, and the rates were unaffected by the addition of 20 mmol/L Na⁺, indicating that the two algae possessed Na+-independent HCO^-₃ utilization for photosynthesis under low DIC. Their photo- synthetic rates at low DIC were inhibited by higher Cl^- and the degrees of inhibition were increased with the rise of CI^- concentration, and in the presence of Diphenylamine-2-carboxylate (DPC), a reported Cl^- channel inhibitor, the rates decreased by 74%－82%, implying that putative DPC-sensitive Cl^- channels participate in Na+-independent HCO₃^- uptake for photosynthesis. The experiment of intracellular 14C-DIC accumulation for photosynthesis showed that internal DIC pools decreased by about 80% with 200 μmol/L DPC and by 64%－70% with 100 mmol/L Cl^-. The experiment of chlorophyll a fluorescence quenching showed that initial rates and extents of fluorescence quenching obviously decreased with 200 μmol/L DPC or 100 mmol/L Cl^-. The two experiments gave further evidence that putative DPC-sen- sitive Cl^- channels participate in Na+-independent HCO^-₃ uptake for photosynthesis in the two algae grown in standing culture.     

HCO3 - 高亲和转运蛋白操纵子基因在聚球藻7942 CO2浓缩机制中功能的研究

蓝藻 Synechococcus sp.PCC7942 HCO3 - 高亲和转运蛋白操纵子基因 cmpABCD 是其CO2浓缩机制中的调控基因之一.本研究用携带潮霉素B磷酸转移酶基因(hygromycin B pho transferase, hpt) 筛选标记的同源双臂整合载体pUC-HATH转化蓝藻Synechococcus sp.PCC7942,以潮霉素B作为筛选试剂筛选出具潮霉素B抗性的转化藻,运用引物PCR方法证实潮霉素B磷酸转移酶基因表达盒通过质粒pUC-HATH的介导已定点插入蓝藻 Synechococcus sp.PCC7942 基因组中,成功地构建了具有潮霉素B抗性的cmpBCD 基因插入失活突变藻株.并最终通过比较野生藻Synechococcus sp.PCC7942 和突变藻Synechococcus sp.PCC7942 在不同 Na2CO3浓度的改良BG-11培养基中生长特性,探讨了HCO3 -高亲和转运蛋白操纵子 cmpABCD 基因失活对藻体生长的影响.     

Genetic analysis and gene mapping of a narrow leaf mutant in rice ( Oryza sativa L.)

A narrow leaf mutant was obtained after T-DNA transformation conducted on a rice variety Zhonghua 11. Several abnormal morphological characteristics, including semi-dwarf, delayed flowering time, narrow and inward rolling leaves, and lower seed-setting, were observed. The rate of net photosynthesis (under saturate light) of flag leaves in the mutant was significantly lower than that of the wild type. Moreover, the leaf transpiration rate and stomatal conductance in the mutant flag leaf were lower than those of the wild type at the grain filling stage. It was found that the mutant phenotype was not caused by the T-DNA insertion. Genetic analysis showed that the mutant was controlled by a single recessive gene, designated as nal3(t). A genetic linkage map was constructed using a large F₂ mapping population derived from a cross between nal3(t) and an indica variety Longtefu B with 6 polymorphic markers on chromosome 12 identified from 366 SSR markers by the BAS method. Gene nal3(t) was mapped between the markers RM7018 and RM3331. Fine mapping of nal3(t) locus was conducted with 22 newly developed STS markers based on the sequence diversity around the region harboring nal3(t) between Nipponbare and 93–11, and nal3(t) was finally mapped to a 136-kb region between the STS markers NS10 and RH12-8. Supported by National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (863 Program) (Grant No. 2006AA10A102), National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 30600349) and Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (Grant No. Y306149)     

Two-Component Signal Transduction Systems in the Cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

Introduction Rapid adaptation to environmental challenges is vitally important for bacterial survival and growth. One way in which bacteria control their response to changing environmental conditions is through the mechanism of two-component signal transd…     

Identification of a novel tillering dwarf mutant and fine mapping of the TDDL（T） gene in rice （Oryza sativa L.）

Rice plant architecture is an important agronomic trait that affects the grain yield. To understand the molecular mechanism that controls plant architecture, a tillering dwarf mutant with darker-green leaves derived from an indica cultivar IR64 treated with EMS is characterized. The mutant, designated as tddl（t）, is nonallelic to the known tiilering dwarf mutants. It is controlled by one recessive nuclear gene, TDDL（T）, and grouped into the dn-type dwarfism according to Takeda＇s definition. The dwarfism of the mutant is independent of gibberellic acid based on the analyses of two GA-mediated processes. The independence of brassinosteroid （BR） and naphthal-3-acetic acid （NAA） of the tddl（t） mutant, together with the decreased size of parenchyma cells in the vascular bundle, indicates that the TDDL（7） gene might participate in another hormone pathway. TDDL（T） is fine mapped within an 85.51 kb region on the long arm of rice chromosome 4, where 20 ORFs are predicted by RiceGAAS （http：//ricegaas.dna.affrc. go.jp/rgadb/）. Further cloning of TDDL（T） will benefit both marker assisted selection （MAS） of plant architecture and dissection of the molecular mechanism underlying tillering dwarf in rice.     

拟南芥雄性不育突变体opw(only pollen wall)候选突变基因的克隆

在T-DNA插入突变体Salk_059463株系的群体中,筛选到两株雄性不育突变体,对TDNA序列上的一对引物进行PCR鉴定,结果表明:其基因组中没有T-DNA插入.遗传分析表明这两株雄性不育突变体由同一单个隐性基因控制,引起不育的主要原因是从花药发育的第8期开始,小孢子细胞质内容物逐渐减少直至消失,到花药发育的第12期,药室内的小孢子只剩下一个花粉壁空壳,故该突变体命名为opw(only pollen wall).利用图位克隆的方法对OPW基因进行了定位,结果表明OPW基因位于第二条染色体上分子标记T28M21和T3G21之间的12 kb区间内,该区间内一共有21个基因注释.通过克隆区间内的基因并测序发现opw-1突变体基因组中At2g40140基因编码序列的外显子在第289和第290个碱基之间插入了一个A碱基,而opw-2突变体基因组中At2g40140基因编码序列的外显子在第412和第413个碱基之间插入了一个T碱基,造成的编码序列移码使第424至第426碱基成为终止密码子,故At2g40140是编码OPW的候选基因.