Photosynthesis in Flaveria brownii A.M. Powell : A C(4)-Like C(3)-C(4) Intermediate

Leaves of Flaveria brownii exhibited slightly higher amounts of oxygen inhibition of photosynthesis than the C₄ species, Flaveria trinervia, but considerably less than the C₃ species, Flaveria cronquistii. The photosynthetic responses to intercellular CO₂, light and leaf temperature were much more C₄-like than C₃-like, although 21% oxygen inhibited the photosynthetic rate, depending on conditions, up to 17% of the photosynthesis rate observed in 2% O₂. The quantum yield for CO₂ uptake in F. brownii was slightly higher than that for the C₄ species F. trinervia in 2% O₂, but not significantly different in 21% O₂. The quantum yield was inhibited 10% in the presence of 21% O₂ in F. brownii, yet no significant inhibition was observed in F. trinervia. An inhibition of 27% was observed for the quantum yield of F. cronquistii in the presence of 21% O₂. The photosynthetic response to very low intercellular CO₂ partial pressures exhibited a unique pattern in F. brownii, with a break in the linear slope observed at intercellular CO₂ partial pressure values between 15 and 20 μbar when analyzed in 21% O₂. No significant break was observed when analyzed in 2% O₂. When taken collectively, the gas-exchange results reported here are consistent with previous biochemical studies that report incomplete intercellular compartmentation of the C₃ and C₄ enzymes in this species, and suggest that F. brownii is an advanced, C₄-like C₃-C₄ intermediate.     

Degree of C(4) Photosynthesis in C(4) and C(3)-C(4)Flaveria Species and Their Hybrids : II. Inhibition of Apparent Photosynthesis by a Phosphoenolpyruvate Carboxylase Inhibitor

Hybrids have been made between species of Flaveria exhibiting varying levels of C₄ photosynthesis. The degree of C₄ photosynthesis expressed in four interspecific hybrids (Flaveria trinervia [C₄] × F. linearis [C₃-C₄], F. brownii [C₄-like] × F. linearis, and two three-species hybrids from F. trinervia × [F. brownii × F. linearis]) was estimated by inhibiting phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase in vivo with 3,3-dichloro-2-dihydroxyphosphinoylmethyl-2-propenoate (DCDP). The inhibitor was fed to detached leaves at a concentration of 4 mm, and apparent photosynthesis was measured at atmospheric levels of CO₂ and at 20 and 210 mL L⁻¹ of O₂. Photosynthesis at 210 mL L⁻¹ of O₂ was inhibited 32% by DCDP in F. linearis, by 60% in F. brownii, and by 87% in F. trinervia. Inhibition in the hybrids ranged from 38 to 52%. The inhibition of photosynthesis by 210 mL L⁻¹ of O₂ was increased when DCDP was used, except in the C₄ species, F. trinervia, in which photosynthesis was insensitive to O₂. Except for F. trinervia, control plants with less O₂ sensitivity (more C₄-like) exhibited a progressively greater change in O₂ inhibition of photosynthesis when treated with DCDP. This increased O₂ inhibition probably resulted from decreased CO₂ concentrations in bundle sheath cells due to inhibition of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase. The inhibition of photosynthesis by DCDP is concluded to underestimate the degree of C₄ photosynthesis in the interspecific hybrids because increased direct assimilation of atmospheric CO₂ by ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase may compensate for inhibition of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase.     

C(4) eudicots are not younger than C(4) monocots

C(4) photosynthesis is a plant adaptation to high levels of photorespiration. Physiological models predict that atmospheric CO(2) concentration selected for C(4) grasses only after it dropped below a critical threshold during the Oligocene (～30 Ma), a hypothesis supported by phylogenetic and molecular dating analyses. However the same models predict that CO(2) should have reached much lower levels before selecting for C(4) eudicots, making C(4) eudicots younger than C(4) grasses. In this study, different phylogenetic datasets were combined in order to conduct the first comparative analysis of the age of C(4) origins in eudicots. Our results suggested that all lineages of C(4) eudicots arose during the last 30 million years, with the earliest before 22 Ma in Chenopodiaceae and Aizoaceae, and the latest probably after 2 Ma in Flaveria. C(4) eudicots are thus not globally younger than C(4) monocots. All lineages of C(4) plants evolved in a similar low CO(2) atmosphere that predominated during the last 30 million years. Independent C(4) origins were probably driven by different combinations of specific factors, including local ecological characteristics such as habitat openness, aridity, and salinity, as well as the speciation and dispersal history of each clade. Neither the lower number of C(4) species nor the frequency of C(3)-C(4) intermediates in eudicots can be attributed to a more recent origin, but probably result from variation in diversification and evolutionary rates among the different groups that evolved the C(4) pathway.     

Degree of C(4) Photosynthesis in C(4) and C(3)-C(4)Flaveria Species and Their Hybrids : I. CO(2) Assimilation and Metabolism and Activities of Phosphoenolpyruvate Carboxylase and NADP-Malic Enzyme

The degree of C₄ photosynthesis was assessed in four hybrids among C₄, C₄-like, and C₃-C₄ species in the genus Flaveria using ¹⁴C labeling, CO₂ exchange, ¹³C discrimination, and C₄ enzyme activities. The hybrids incorporated from 57 to 88% of the ¹⁴C assimilated in a 10-s exposure into C₄ acids compared with 26% for the C₃-C₄ species Flaveria linearis, 91% for the C₄ species Flaveria trinervia, and 87% for the C₄-like Flaveria brownii. Those plants with high percentages of ¹⁴C initially fixed into C₄ acids also metabolized the C₄ acids quickly, and the percentage of ¹⁴C in 3-phosphoglyceric acid plus sugar phosphates increased for at least a 30-s exposure to ¹²CO₂. This indicated a high degree of coordination between the carbon accumulation and reduction phases of the C₄ and C₃ cycles. Synthesis and metabolism of C₄ acids by the species and their hybrids were highly and linearly correlated with discrimination against ¹³C. The relationship of ¹³C discrimination or ¹⁴C metabolism to O₂ inhibition of photosynthesis was curvilinear, changing more rapidly at C₄-like values of ¹⁴C metabolism and ¹³C discrimination. Incorporation of initial ¹⁴C into C₄ acids showed a biphasic increase with increased activities of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase and NADP-malic enzyme (steep at low activities), but turnover of C₄ acids was linearly related to NADP-malic enzyme activity. Several other traits were closely related to the in vitro activity of NADP-malic enzyme but not phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase. The data indicate that the hybrids have variable degrees of C₄ photosynthesis but that the carbon accumulation and reduction portions of the C₄ and C₃ cycles are well coordinated.     

The temperature response of C(3) and C(4) photosynthesis

We review the current understanding of the temperature responses of C(3) and C(4) photosynthesis across thermal ranges that do not harm the photosynthetic apparatus. In C(3) species, photosynthesis is classically considered to be limited by the capacities of ribulose 1.5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco), ribulose bisphosphate (RuBP) regeneration or P(i) regeneration. Using both theoretical and empirical evidence, we describe the temperature response of instantaneous net CO(2) assimilation rate (A) in terms of these limitations, and evaluate possible limitations on A at elevated temperatures arising from heat-induced lability of Rubisco activase. In C(3) plants, Rubisco capacity is the predominant limitation on A across a wide range of temperatures at low CO(2) (<300 microbar), while at elevated CO(2), the limitation shifts to P(i) regeneration capacity at suboptimal temperatures, and either electron transport capacity or Rubisco activase capacity at supraoptimal temperatures. In C(4) plants, Rubisco capacity limits A below 20 degrees C in chilling-tolerant species, but the control over A at elevated temperature remains uncertain. Acclimation of C(3) photosynthesis to suboptimal growth temperature is commonly associated with a disproportional enhancement of the P(i) regeneration capacity. Above the thermal optimum, acclimation of A to increasing growth temperature is associated with increased electron transport capacity and/or greater heat stability of Rubisco activase. In many C(4) species from warm habitats, acclimation to cooler growth conditions increases levels of Rubisco and C(4) cycle enzymes which then enhance A below the thermal optimum. By contrast, few C(4) species adapted to cooler habitats increase Rubisco content during acclimation to reduced growth temperature; as a result, A changes little at suboptimal temperatures. Global change is likely to cause a widespread shift in patterns of photosynthetic limitation in higher plants. Limitations in electron transport and Rubisco activase capacity should be more common in the warmer, high CO(2) conditions expected by the end of the century.     

Photosynthesis of F(1) Hybrids between C(4) and C(3)-C(4) Species of Flaveria

Photosynthetic characteristics were studied in several F₁ hybrids between C₄ and C₃-C₄ species of Flaveria. Stable carbon isotope ratios, O₂ inhibition of apparent photosynthesis, and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase activities in the hybrids were similar to the means for the parents. Values of CO₂ compensation concentrations were nearer to those of the C₄ parent and apparent photosynthesis was below that of both parents, being only 60 and 74% of that of the lowest (C₃-C₄) parent in two experiments. Reductions of CO₂ compensation concentration and O₂ inhibition of apparent photosynthesis as well as increases in carbon isotope ratios and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase activities compared to values in C₃-C₄ species suggest transfer of a limited degree of C₄ photosynthesis to the F₁ hybrids. However, the lower apparent photosynthesis of the hybrids suggests that transfer of C₄ characteristics to non-C₄ species is detrimental unless characteristics associated with C₄ photosynthesis are fully developed. There was a highly significant negative correlation (r = −0.90) between CO₂ compensation concentration and the logarithm of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase activity in the parents and hybrids, suggesting involvement of this enzyme in controlling the CO₂ compensation concentration. Although bundle-sheath cells were more developed in leaves of hybrids than in C₃-C₄ parents, they appeared to contain lower quantities of organelles than those of the C₄ parent. Reduced quantities of organelles in bundle-sheath cells could indicate incomplete compartmentation of partial pathways of the C₄ cycle in the hybrids. This may mean that the reduction of CO₂ compensation and O₂ inhibition of apparent photosynthesis relative to the C₃-C₄ parents is less dependent on fully developed Kranz anatomy than is increased apparent photosynthesis.     

Assimilatory sulfate reduction in C(3), C(3)-C(4), and C(4) species of Flaveria

The activity of the enzymes catalyzing the first two steps of sulfate assimilation, ATP sulfurylase and adenosine 5'-phosphosulfate reductase (APR), are confined to bundle sheath cells in several C(4) monocot species. With the aim to analyze the molecular basis of this distribution and to determine whether it was a prerequisite or a consequence of the C(4) photosynthetic mechanism, we compared the intercellular distribution of the activity and the mRNA of APR in C(3), C(3)-C(4), C(4)-like, and C(4) species of the dicot genus Flaveria. Measurements of APR activity, mRNA level, and protein accumulation in six Flaveria species revealed that APR activity, cysteine, and glutathione levels were significantly higher in C(4)-like and C(4) species than in C(3) and C(3)-C(4) species. ATP sulfurylase and APR mRNA were present at comparable levels in both mesophyll and bundle sheath cells of C(4) species Flaveria trinervia. Immunogold electron microscopy demonstrated the presence of APR protein in chloroplasts of both cell types. These findings, taken together with results from the literature, show that the localization of assimilatory sulfate reduction in the bundle sheath cells is not ubiquitous among C(4) plants and therefore is neither a prerequisite nor a consequence of C(4) photosynthesis.     

Isolation of the fourth component (C4) of rat complement.

The fourth component of rat complement was purified to homogeneity by sequential chromatography of rat plasma in benzamidine on QAE-A50, SP-C50, hydroxyapatite, and gel filtration on Bio-Gel A 1.5. The final material was homogeneous on SDS-PAGE analysis and had a calculated m.w. of 198,000. A monospecific antibody against rat C4 was obtained from immunized rabbits. The concentration of rat C4 in the plasma of normal 4-month-old Wistar rats was 190 +/- 34 microgram/ml (mean +/- 1 S.D.).     

Exploiting the engine of C(4) photosynthesis

Ever since the discovery of C(4) photosynthesis in the mid-1960s, plant biologists have envisaged the introduction of the C(4) photosynthetic pathway into C(3) crops such as rice and soybeans. Recent advances in genomics capabilities, and new evolutionary and developmental studies indicate that C(4) engineering will be feasible in the next few decades. Furthermore, better understanding of the function of C(4) photosynthesis provides new ways to improve existing C(4) crops and bioenergy species, for example by creating varieties with ultra-high water and nitrogen use efficiencies. In the case of C(4) engineering, the main enzymes of the C(4) metabolic cycle have already been engineered into various C(3) plants. In contrast, knowledge of the genes controlling Kranz anatomy lags far behind. Combining traditional genetics, high-throughput sequencing technologies, systems biology, bioinformatics, and the use of the new C(4) model species Setaria viridis, the discovery of the key genes controlling the expression of C(4) photosynthesis can be dramatically accelerated. Sustained investment in the research areas directly related to C(4) engineering has the potential for substantial return in the decades to come, primarily by increasing crop production at a time when global food supplies are predicted to fall below world demand.     

A Comparison of Dark Respiration between C(3) and C(4) Plants

Lower respiratory costs were hypothesized as providing an additional benefit in C₄ plants compared to C₃ plants due to less investment in proteins in C₄ leaves. Therefore, photosynthesis and dark respiration of mature leaves were compared between a number of C₄ and C₃ species. Although photosynthetic rates were generally greater in C₄ when compared to C₃ species, no differences were found in dark respiration rates of individual leaves at either the beginning or after 16 h of the dark period. The effects of nitrogen on photosynthesis and respiration of individual leaves and whole plants were also investigated in two species that occupy similar habitats, Amaranthus retroflexus (C₄) and Chenopodium album (C₃). For mature leaves of both species, there was no relationship between leaf nitrogen and leaf respiration, with leaves of both species exhibiting a similar rate of decline after 16 h of darkness. In contrast, leaf photosynthesis increased with increasing leaf nitrogen in both species, with the C₄ species displaying a greater photosynthetic response to leaf nitrogen. For whole plants of both species grown at different nitrogen levels, there was a clear linear relationship between net CO₂ uptake and CO₂ efflux in the dark. The dependence of nightly CO₂ efflux on CO₂ uptake was similar for both species, although the response of CO₂ uptake to leaf nitrogen was much steeper in the C₄ species, Amaranthus retroflexus. Rates of growth and maintenance respiration by whole plants of both species were similar, with both species displaying higher rates at higher leaf nitrogen. There were no significant differences in leaf or whole plant maintenance respiration between species at any temperature between 18 and 42°C. The data suggest no obvious differences in respiratory costs in C₄ and C₃ plants.     

Photosynthetic Characteristics of C(3)-C(4) Intermediate Flaveria Species : I. Leaf Anatomy, Photosynthetic Responses to O(2) and CO(2), and Activities of Key Enzymes in the C(3) and C(4) Pathways

Four species of the genus Flaveria, namely F. anomala, F. linearis, F. pubescens, and F. ramosissima, were identified as intermediate C₃-C₄ plants based on leaf anatomy, photosynthetic CO₂ compensation point, O₂ inhibition of photosynthesis, and activities of C₄ enzymes. F. anomala and F. ramosissima exhibit a distinct Kranz-like leaf anatomy, similar to that of the C₄ species F. trinervia, while the other C₃-C₄ intermediate Flaveria species possess a less differentiated Kranz-like leaf anatomy. Photosynthetic CO₂ compensation points of these intermediates at 30°C were very low relative to those of C₃ plants, ranging from 7 to 14 microliters per liter. In contrast to C₃ plants, net photosynthesis by the intermediates was not sensitive to O₂ concentrations below 5% and decreased relatively slowly with increasing O₂ concentration. Under similar conditions, the percentage inhibition of photosynthesis by 21% O₂ varied from 20% to 25% in the intermediates compared with 28% in Lycopersicon esculentum, a typical C₃ species. The inhibition of carboxylation efficiency by 21% O₂ varied from 17% for F. ramosissima to 46% for F. anomala and were intermediate between the C₄ (2% for F. trinervia) and C₃ (53% for L. esculentum) values. The intermediate Flaveria species, especially F. ramosissima, have substantial activities of the C₄ enzymes, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, pyruvate, orthophosphate dikinase, NADP-malic enzyme, and NADP-malate dehydrogenase, indicating potential for C₄ photosynthesis. It appears that these Flaveria species may be true biochemical C₃-C₄ intermediates.     

Climate change and the evolution of C(4) photosynthesis

Plants assimilate carbon by one of three photosynthetic pathways, commonly called the C(3), C(4), and CAM pathways. The C(4) photosynthetic pathway, found only among the angiosperms, represents a modification of C(3) metabolism that is most effective at low concentrations of CO(2). Today, C(4) plants are most common in hot, open ecosystems, and it is commonly felt that they evolved under these conditions. However, high light and high temperature, by themselves, are not sufficient to favor the evolution of C(4) photosynthesis at atmospheric CO(2) levels significantly above the current ambient values. A review of evidence suggests that C(4) plants evolved in response to a reduction in atmospheric CO(2) levels that began during the Cretaceous and continued until the Miocene.     

Detection of disulphide bonds and localization of interchain linkages in the third (C3) and the fourth (C4) components of human complement.

Disulphide bonds contribute significantly to the maintenance of structural/functional integrity of many proteins. Therefore it was of interest to study the distribution and the effect of disulphides on conformation of complement components C3 and C4. These proteins are precursors of several fragments with various binding sites and distinct physiological functions. The constituents of C3c (beta, alpha 27, alpha 43) and those of C4c (beta, alpha 27, alpha 16, gamma) were investigated, since other fragments of C3 or C4 do not participate in interchain linkages. Inter-and intra-chain disulphide bonds in C3c and C4c were localized by using a modification of conventional SDS (sodium dodecyl sulphate)/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis such that the change in mobility of disulphide-bond-containing proteins can be detected throughout the transition from a non-reduced to a fully reduced state. Several forms of the alpha 43 fragment from C3, and of the gamma-chain of C4, with different mobilities can exist, depending on the number of intra-chain disulphide bonds reduced. The intermediates (heterodimers) generated by a partial reduction of C3c or C4c were characterized by two-dimensional SDS/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis performed in the absence, then in the presence, of beta-mercaptoethanol. The inter-chain linkages in C3c were determined to be beta-alpha 27 and alpha 27- alpha 43, thus indicating the presence of only one interchain bond in C3. The two interchain bonds in C4c are beta-alpha 27 and alpha 16-gamma. The third interchain bond in C4 (alpha 27-gamma, tentative) remains to be determined.     

Role of the fourth complement component (C4) in the regulation of contact sensitivity. III. In vivo effect of purified C4

Lymph node cells obtained from CBA/J mice 4 days after painting with contact sensitizing agents such as picryl chloride or oxazolone ("4-day" cells), induce contact sensitivity into naive recipient mice by membrane-associated immunocomplexes. This immunizing capacity is abolished after incubation of the cells in serum from mice with high C4 levels (C4H), but not in serum from mice with low C4 levels (C4L), and the inhibitory activity of C4H serum is due to the activation of the early components of the classical complement pathway. The presence of 4-day cells depends on C4 levels: in fact, C4H mice lack these cells because they activate their own complement in vivo, whereas C4L mice fail to activate complement in vivo and possess 4-day cells. CBA/J (C4L) mice injected with purified C4 preparations from the C4H mice BALB/c, lose 4-day cells and show a short-term contact-sensitivity reaction, exactly as BALB/c mice, thus indicating that C4 levels play a role in the control of contact-sensitivity reaction to simple chemical haptens.     

Characterization of the interaction between human protein S and C4b-binding protein (C4bp)

C4b-binding protein, C4bp, is a regulatory factor of the complement system and is also known to be a binding protein of vitamin K-dependent coagulation factor, protein S. Whereas the C4b-binding site is known to be located in the middle part of the subunit chains of C4bp, the location and properties of protein S-binding site are uncertain. Therefore, we have examined the characteristics of the interaction between human protein S and C4bp. Proteolysis of C4bp-protein S complex with chymotrypsin yielded N-terminal-derived 48-kDa fragments of C4bp subunit chains and a C-terminal-derived 160-kDa core fragment of C4bp, to which protein S was still bound. This result suggested that the protein S-binding site is located in the core domain of C4bp. Gel filtration of guanidine-treated C4bp-protein S complex in the absence of guanidine resulted in the separation of C4bp and protein S. Binding assay with 125I-labeled protein S showed that the guanidine-treated C4bp lacked the protein S-binding activity. This result suggests that the protein S-binding site in C4bp is denatured irreversibly by guanidine treatment and therefore seems to be dependent on a specific conformation of C4bp. The C4bp-binding site of protein S was lost upon thrombin treatment, suggesting that the N-terminal thrombin-sensitive region of protein S may be related to the C4bp-binding site. Although free protein S was susceptible to chymotrypsin, leukocyte elastase, and cathepsin G, C4bp-bound protein S was found to be resistant to these proteases.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)