Prochlorococcus, a marine photosynthetic prokaryote of global significance.
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The minute photosynthetic prokaryote Prochlorococcus, which was discovered about 10 years ago, has proven exceptional from several standpoints. Its tiny size (0.5 to 0.7 microm in diameter) makes it the smallest known photosynthetic organism. Its ubiquity within the 40 degrees S to 40 degrees N latitudinal band of oceans and its occurrence at high density from the surface down to depths of 200 m make it presumably the most abundant photosynthetic organism on Earth. Prochlorococcus typically divides once a day in the subsurface layer of oligotrophic areas, where it dominates the photosynthetic biomass. It also possesses a remarkable pigment complement which includes divinyl derivatives of chlorophyll a (Chl a) and Chl b, the so-called Chl a2 and Chl b2, and, in some strains, small amounts of a new type of phycoerythrin. Phylogenetically, Prochlorococcus has also proven fascinating. Recent studies suggest that it evolved from an ancestral cyanobacterium by reducing its cell and genome sizes and by recruiting a protein originally synthesized under conditions of iron depletion to build a reduced antenna system as a replacement for large phycobilisomes. Environmental constraints clearly played a predominant role in Prochlorococcus evolution. Its tiny size is an advantage for its adaptation to nutrient-deprived environments. Furthermore, genetically distinct ecotypes, with different antenna systems and ecophysiological characteristics, are present at depth and in surface waters. This vertical species variation has allowed Prochlorococcus to adapt to the natural light gradient occurring in the upper layer of oceans. The present review critically assesses the basic knowledge acquired about Prochlorococcus both in the ocean and in the laboratory. (+info)
In vivo role of catalase-peroxidase in synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803.
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The katG gene coding for the only catalase-peroxidase in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 was deleted in this organism. Although the rate of H2O2 decomposition was about 30 times lower in the DeltakatG mutant than in the wild type, the strain had a normal phenotype and its doubling time as well as its resistance to H2O2 and methyl viologen were indistinguishable from those of the wild type. The residual H2O2-scavenging capacity was more than sufficient to deal with the rate of H2O2 production by the cell, estimated to be less than 1% of the maximum rate of photosynthetic electron transport in vivo. We propose that catalase-peroxidase has a protective role against environmental H2O2 generated by algae or bacteria in the ecosystem (for example, in mats). This protective role is most apparent at a high cell density of the cyanobacterium. The residual H2O2-scavenging activity in the DeltakatG mutant was a light-dependent peroxidase activity. However, neither glutathione peroxidase nor ascorbate peroxidase accounted for a significant part of this H2O2-scavenging activity. When a small thiol such as dithiothreitol was added to the medium, the rate of H2O2 decomposition in the DeltakatG mutant increased more than 10-fold, indicating that a thiol-specific peroxidase, for which thioredoxin may be the physiological electron donor, is present. Oxidized thioredoxin is likely to be reduced again by photosynthetic electron transport. Therefore, under laboratory conditions, there are only two enzymatic mechanisms for H2O2 decomposition present in Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803. One is catalyzed by a catalase-peroxidase, and the other is catalyzed by thiol-specific peroxidase. (+info)
The marine cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. WH7805 requires urease (urea amidohydrolase, EC 3.5.1.5) to utilize urea as a nitrogen source: molecular-genetic and biochemical analysis of the enzyme.
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Cyanobacteria assigned to the genus Synechococcus are an important component of oligotrophic marine ecosystems, where their growth may be constrained by low availability of fixed nitrogen. Urea appears to be a major nitrogen resource in the sea, but little molecular information exists about its utilization by marine organisms, including Synechococcus. Oligonucleotide primers were used to amplify a conserved fragment of the urease (urea amidohydrolase, EC 3.5.1.5) coding region from cyanobacteria. A 5.7 kbp region of the genome of the unicellular marine cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain WH7805 was then cloned, and genes encoding three urease structural subunits and four urease accessory proteins were sequenced and identified by homology. The WH7805 urease had a predicted subunit composition typical of bacterial ureases, but the organization of the WH7805 urease genes was unique. Biochemical characteristics of the WH7805 urease enzyme were consistent with the predictions of the sequence data. Physiological data and sequence analysis both suggested that the urease operon may be nitrogen-regulated by the ntcA system in WH7805. Inactivation of the large subunit of urease, ureC, prevented WH7805 and Synechococcus WH8102 from growing on urea, demonstrating that the urease genes cloned are essential to the ability of these cyanobacteria to utilize urea as a nitrogen source. (+info)
Structural features and assembly of the soluble overexpressed PsaD subunit of photosystem I.
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PsaD is a peripheral protein on the reducing side of photosystem I (PS I). We expressed the psaD gene from the thermophilic cyanobacterium Mastigocladus laminosus in Escherichia coli and obtained a soluble protein with a polyhistidine tag at the carboxyl terminus. The soluble PsaD protein was purified by Ni-affinity chromatography and had a mass of 16716 Da by MALDI-TOF. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of the overexpressed PsaD matched the N-terminal sequence of the native PsaD from M. laminosus. The soluble PsaD could assemble into the PsaD-less PS I. As determined by isothermal titration calorimetry, PsaD bound to PS I with 1.0 binding site per PS I, the binding constant of 7.7x10(6) M-1, and the enthalpy change of -93.6 kJ mol-1. This is the first time that the binding constant and binding heat have been determined in the assembly of any photosynthetic membrane protein. To identify the surface-exposed domains, purified PS I complexes and overexpressed PsaD were treated with N-hydroxysuccinimidobiotin (NHS-biotin) and biotin-maleimide, and the biotinylated residues were mapped. The Cys66, Lys21, Arg118 and Arg119 residues were exposed on the surface of soluble PsaD whereas the Lys129 and Lys131 residues were not exposed on the surface. Consistent with the X-ray crystallographic studies on PS I, circular dichroism spectroscopy revealed that PsaD contains a small proportion of alpha-helical conformation. (+info)
Characterization of a novel unconjugated pteridine glycoside, cyanopterin, in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803.
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A new pteridine glycoside, called cyanopterin, was isolated from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 and its structure was elucidated as 6-[1-(4-O-methyl-(alpha-d-glucuronyl)-(1, 6)-(beta-d-galactosyloxy]methylpterin by chemical degradation and 1H- and 13C-NMR spectroscopic means. Cyanopterin is constitutively synthesized at a relatively high intracellular concentration that is comparable to that of chlorophyll a in a molar ratio of approximately 1 to 1.6. The in vivo oxidation state of cyanopterin is primarily the fully reduced 5,6,7,8-tetrahydro form. The cellular function is unknown at present. The findings have established a model system, using Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, for studies of the physiological functions of unconjugated pteridine glycosides found mostly in cyanobacteria. (+info)
NMR study of the metabolic 15N isotopic enrichment of cyanophycin synthesized by the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6308.
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1H, 13C and 15N nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy has been used to characterize cyanophycin, a multi-l-arginyl-poly-[l-aspartic acid] polypeptide from the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6308. 1H, 13C and 15N chemical shifts and 1JHN and 1JCN coupling constants were measured in isolated 15N-labeled cyanophycin, and showed chemical shift values and J-couplings consistent with the reported polypeptide structure. 15N enrichment levels were determined from the extent of 1H-15N J-coupling in 1H NMR spectra of cyanophycin. Similar experiments using 13C-15N coupling in 13C NMR spectra were not useful in determining enrichment levels. (+info)
Computer method for predicting the secondary structure of single-stranded RNA.
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We present a computer method utilizing published values for base pairing energies to compute the most energetically favorable secondary structure of an RNA from its primary nucleotide sequence. After listing all possible double-helical regions, every pair of mutally incompatible regions (whose nucleotides overlap) is examined to determine whether parts of those two regions can be combined by branch migration to form a pair of compatible new subregions which together are more stable than either of the original regions separately. These subregions are added to the list of base pairing regions which will compete to form the best overall structure. Then, a 'hyperstructure matrix' is generated, containing the unique topological relationship between every pair of regions. We have shown that the best structure can be chosen directly from this matrix, without the necessity of creating and examing every possible secondary structure. We have included the results from our solution of the 5S rRNA of the cyanobacterium Anacystis nidulans as an example of our program's capabilities. (+info)
The role of an alternative sigma factor in motility and pilus formation in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC6803.
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Disruption of a gene for an alternative sigma factor, designated sigF, in the freshwater, unicellular cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC6803 resulted in a pleiotropic phenotype. Most notably, this mutant lost phototactic movement with a concomitant loss of pili, which are abundant on the surface of wild-type cells. The sigF mutant also secreted both high levels of yellow-brown and UV-absorbing pigments and a polypeptide that is similar to a large family of extracellular proteins that includes the hemolysins. Furthermore, the sigF mutant had a dramatically reduced level of the transcript from two tandemly arranged pilA genes (sll1694 and sll1695), which encode major structural components of type IV pili. Inactivation of these pilA genes eliminated phototactic movement, though some pili were still present in this strain. Together, these results demonstrate that SigF plays a critical role in motility via the control of pili formation and is also likely to regulate other features of the cell surface. Furthermore, the data provide evidence that type IV pili are required for phototactic movement in certain cyanobacteria and suggest that different populations of pili present on the Synechocystis cell surface may perform different functions. (+info)