Investigation of the Functional Role of Ctp Proteins in the Cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

To understand the functional role of CtpB and CtpC proteins, which are similar to the C-terminal processing CtpA peptidase, the effect of the insertional inactivation of the ctpB and ctpCgenes on the phenotypic characteristics of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 was studied. The inactivation of the ctpC gene was found to be lethal to the cyanobacterium, which indicates a vital role of the CtpC protein. The mutant with the inactivated ctpB gene had the same photosynthetic characteristics as the wild-type strain. The double mutant ctpActpB with the two deleted genes was identical, in the phenotypic characteristics, to the mutant with a knock-out mutation in the ctpAgene, which was unable to grow photoautotrophically. The data obtained suggest that, in spite of the high similarity of the Ctp proteins, they serve different functions in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 cells and cannot compensate for each other.     

Pleiotropic effects of inactivating a carboxyl-terminal protease, CtpA, in Borrelia burgdorferi

A gene encoding a putative carboxyl-terminal protease (CtpA), an unusual type of protease, is present in the Borrelia burgdorferi B31 genome. The B. burgdorferi CtpA amino acid sequence exhibits similarities to the sequences of the CtpA enzymes of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 and higher plants and also exhibits similarities to the sequences of putative CtpA proteins in other bacterial species. Here, we studied the effect of ctpA gene inactivation on the B. burgdorferi protein expression profile. Total B. burgdorferi proteins were separated by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, and the results revealed that six proteins of the wild type were not detected in the ctpA mutant and that nine proteins observed in the ctpA mutant were undetectable in the wild type. Immunoblot analysis showed that the integral outer membrane protein P13 was larger and had a more acidic pI in the ctpA mutant, which is consistent with the theoretical change in pI for P13 not processed at the carboxyl terminus. Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight data indicated that in addition to P13, the BB0323 protein may serve as a substrate for carboxyl-terminal processing by CtpA. Complementation analysis of the ctpA mutant provided strong evidence that the observed effect on proteins depended on inactivation of the ctpA gene alone. We show that CtpA in B. burgdorferi is involved in the processing of proteins such as P13 and BB0323 and that inactivation of ctpA has a pleiotropic effect on borrelial protein synthesis. To our knowledge, this is the first analysis of both a CtpA protease and different substrate proteins in a pathogenic bacterium.     

Regulation of Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120 glutamine synthetase activity in a Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 derivative strain bearing the Anabaena glnA gene and a mutated host glnA gene.

The glnA gene from Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 was cloned by hybridization with the glnA gene from Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120, and a deletion-insertion mutation of the Synechocystis gene was generated in vitro. A strain derived from Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 which contained integrated into the chromosome, in addition to its own glnA gene, the Anabaena glnA gene was constructed. From that strain, a Synechocystis sp. glnA mutant could be obtained by transformation with the inactivated Synechocystis glnA gene; this mutant grew by using Anabaena glutamine synthetase and was not a glutamine auxotroph. A Synechocystis sp. glnA mutant could not be obtained, however, from the wild-type Synechocystis sp. The Anabaena glutamine synthetase enzyme was subject to ammonium-promoted inactivation when expressed in the Synechocystis strain but not in the Anabaena strain itself.     

Role of the GlgX protein in glycogen metabolism of the cyanobacterium, Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942

The putative glgX gene encoding isoamylase-type debranching enzyme was isolated from the cyanobacterium, Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942. The deduced amino acid sequence indicated that the residues essential to the catalytic activity and substrate binding in bacterial and plant isoamylases and GlgX proteins were all conserved in the GlgX protein of S. elongatus PCC 7942. The role of GlgX in the cyanobacterium was examined by insertional inactivation of the gene. Disruption of the glgX gene resulted in the enhanced fluctuation of glycogen content in the cells during light-dark cycles of the culture, although the effect was marginal. The glycogen of the glgX mutant was enriched with very short chains with degree of polymerization 2 to 4. When the mutant was transformed with putative glgX genes of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, the short chains were decreased as compared to the parental mutant strain. The result indicated that GlgX protein contributes to form the branching pattern of polysaccharide in S. elongatus PCC 7942.     

Isolation and characterization of homogentisate phytyltransferase genes from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 and Arabidopsis

Tocopherols, synthesized by photosynthetic organisms, are micronutrients with antioxidant properties that play important roles in animal and human nutrition. Because of these health benefits, there is considerable interest in identifying the genes involved in tocopherol biosynthesis to allow transgenic alteration of both tocopherol levels and composition in agricultural crops. Tocopherols are generated from the condensation of phytyldiphosphate and homogentisic acid (HGA), followed by cyclization and methylation reactions. Homogentisate phytyltransferase (HPT) performs the first committed step in this pathway, the phytylation of HGA. In this study, bioinformatics techniques were used to identify candidate genes, slr1736 and HPT1, that encode HPT from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 and Arabidopsis, respectively. These two genes encode putative membrane-bound proteins, and contain amino acid residues highly conserved with other prenyltransferases of the aromatic type. A Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 slr1736 null mutant obtained by insertional inactivation did not accumulate tocopherols, and was rescued by the Arabidopsis HPT1 ortholog. The membrane fraction of wild-type Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 was capable of catalyzing the phytylation of HGA, whereas the membrane fraction from the slr1736 null mutant was not. The microsomal membrane fraction of baculovirus-infected insect cells expressing the Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 slr1736 were also able to perform the phytylation reaction, verifying HPT activity of the protein encoded by this gene. In addition, evidence that antisense expression of HPT1 in Arabidopsis resulted in reduced seed tocopherol levels, whereas seed-specific sense expression resulted in increased seed tocopherol levels, is presented.     

Isolation and functional characterization of Ca2+/H+ antiporters from cyanobacteria

Genome sequences of cyanobacteria, Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, Anabaena sp. PCC 7120, and Thermosynechococcus elongatus BP-1 revealed the presence of a single Ca2+/H+ antiporter in these organisms. Here, we isolated the putative Ca2+/H+ antiporter gene from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 (synCAX) as well as a homologous gene from a halotolerant cyanobacterium Aphanothece halophytica (apCAX). In contrast to plant vacuolar CAXs, the full-length apCAX and synCAX genes complemented the Ca2+-sensitive phenotype of an Escherichia coli mutant. ApCAX and SynCAX proteins catalyzed specifically the Ca2+/H+ exchange reaction at alkaline pH. Immunological analysis suggested their localization in plasma membranes. The Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 cells disrupted of synCAX exhibited lower Ca2+ efflux activity and a salt-sensitive phenotype. Overexpression of ApCAX and SynCAX enhanced the salt tolerance of Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942 cells. Mutagenesis analyses indicate the importance of two conserved acidic amino acid residues, Glu-74 and Glu-324, in the transmembrane segments for the exchange activity. These results clearly indicate that cyanobacteria contain a Ca2+/H+ antiporter in their plasma membranes, which plays an important role for salt tolerance.     

Functional analysis of PilT from the toxic cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa PCC 7806

The evolution of the microcystin toxin gene cluster in phylogenetically distant cyanobacteria has been attributed to recombination, inactivation, and deletion events, although gene transfer may also be involved. Since the microcystin-producing Microcystis aeruginosa PCC 7806 is naturally transformable, we have initiated the characterization of its type IV pilus system, involved in DNA uptake in many bacteria, to provide a physiological focus for the influence of gene transfer in microcystin evolution. The type IV pilus genes pilA, pilB, pilC, and pilT were shown to be expressed in M. aeruginosa PCC 7806. The purified PilT protein yielded a maximal ATPase activity of 37.5 +/- 1.8 nmol P(i) min(-1) mg protein(-1), with a requirement for Mg(2+). Heterologous expression indicated that it could complement the pilT mutant of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, but not that of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803, which was unexpected. Differences in two critical residues between the M. aeruginosa PCC 7806 PilT (7806 PilT) and the Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 PilT proteins affected their theoretical structural models, which may explain the nonfunctionality of 7806 PilT in its cyanobacterial counterpart. Screening of the pilT gene in toxic and nontoxic strains of Microcystis was also performed.     

集胞藻PCC6803膜脂循环关键基因酶学性质和生理功能

集胞藻PCC6803野生型和其脂酰ACP合酶敲除突变株的自由脂肪酸含量和组成表明膜脂的重构和降解是细胞内自由脂肪酸的来源之一。在这一过程中脂肪酶起到关键性作用。通过基因组数据库检索,发现集胞藻PCC6803基因组中只有一个脂肪酶编码基因sll1969,但是还没有其功能相关的生化证据。为了确定该基因的功能及其在脂肪酸代谢途径中的作用,加深对集胞藻PCC6803脂肪酸代谢途径的了解,文中将sll1969基因在大肠杆菌中过表达和体外纯化,得到重组蛋白Sll1969,并对其酶学性质进行初步分析。在30℃条件下,测得Sll1969以对硝基苯丁酸酯作为底物时的Km和kcat值分别为(1.16±0.01)mmol/L和(332.8±10.0)/min;该脂肪酶的最适反应温度为55℃。通过比较分析sll1969突变株中脂肪酸含量和组成变化,发现sll1969的表达量与细胞自由脂肪酸的产量呈正相关,但Sll1969不是细胞中唯一的脂肪酶。     

The gun4 gene is essential for cyanobacterial porphyrin metabolism

Ycf53 is a hypothetical chloroplast open reading frame with similarity to the Arabidopsis nuclear gene GUN4. In plants, GUN4 is involved in tetrapyrrole biosynthesis. We demonstrate that one of the two Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 ycf53 genes with similarity to GUN4 functions in chlorophyll (Chl) biosynthesis as well: cyanobacterial gun4 mutant cells exhibit lower Chl contents, accumulate protoporphyrin IX and show less activity not only of Mg chelatase but also of Fe chelatase. The possible role of Gun4 for the Mg as well as Fe porphyrin biosynthesis branches in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 is discussed.     

集胞藻PCC6803铜离子诱导表达平台的构建

在集胞藻PCC6803中,基因敲除是研究基因功能的最直接有效的方法,但是对于某些生存必需的基因则无法通过这种方法获得突变株。为研究集胞藻PCC6803中此类基因的功能,在其基因组中构建了一个petE基因启动子（PpetE）控制的铜离子诱导表达的平台。将集胞藻PpetE装配在lacZ报告基因的上游,通过同源双交换整合到这种蓝藻的基因组中。通过调节培养基中铜离子的浓度发现,lacZ的表达能够人为控制。特别是当铜离子浓度在6－400nmoL／L范围时,LacZ活力随铜离子浓度增加呈S型增长关系。利用这个铜离子诱导表达平台,可以控制某些必需基因的表达：提供铜离子维持细胞生存;而撤去铜离子时则关闭基因的表达,可以观察其对生命活动的影响。     

The rpaC gene product regulates phycobilisome-photosystem II interaction in cyanobacteria

State transitions in cyanobacteria are a physiological adaptation mechanism that changes the interaction of the phycobilisomes with the Photosystem I and Photosystem II core complexes. A random mutagenesis study in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 identified a gene named rpaC which appeared to be specifically required for state transitions. rpaC is a conserved cyanobacterial gene which was tentatively suggested to code for a novel signal transduction factor. The predicted gene product is a 9-kDa integral membrane protein. We have further examined the role of rpaC by overexpressing the gene in Synechocystis 6803 and by inactivating the ortholog in a second cyanobacterium, Synechococcus sp. PCC7942. Unlike the Synechocystis 6803 null mutant, the Synechococcus 7942 null mutant is unable to segregate, indicating that the gene is essential for cell viability in this cyanobacterium. The Synechocystis 6803 overexpressor is also unable to segregate, indicating that the cells can only tolerate a limited gene copy number. The non-segregated Synechococcus 7942 mutant can perform state transitions but shows a perturbed phycobilisome-Photosystem II interaction. Based on these results, we propose that the rpaC gene product controls the stability of the phycobilisome-Photosystem II supercomplex, and is probably a structural component of the complex.     

Isolation of regulated genes of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 by differential display

Global identification of differentially regulated genes in prokaryotes is constrained because the mRNA does not have a 3' polyadenylation extension; this precludes specific separation of mRNA from rRNA and tRNA and synthesis of cDNAs from the entire mRNA population. Knowledge of the entire genome sequence of Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 has enabled us to develop a differential display procedure that takes advantage of a short palindromic sequence that is dispersed throughout the Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 genome. This sequence, designated the HIP (highly iterated palindrome) element, occurs in approximately half of the Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 genes but is absent in rRNA and tRNA genes. To determine the feasibility of exploiting the HIP element, alone or in combination with specific primer subsets, for analyzing differential gene expression, we used HIP-based primers to identify light intensity-regulated genes. Several gene fragments, including those encoding ribosomal proteins and phycobiliprotein subunits, were differentially amplified from RNA templates derived from cells grown in low light or exposed to high light for 3 h. One novel finding was that expression of certain genes of the pho regulon, which are under the control of environmental phosphate levels, were markedly elevated in high light. High-light activation of pho regulon genes correlated with elevated growth rates that occur when the cells are transferred from low to high light. These results suggest that in high light, the rate of growth of Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 exceeds its capacity to assimilate phosphate, which, in turn, may trigger a phosphate starvation response and activation of the pho regulon.     

A cyanobacterial gene family coding for single-helix proteins resembling part of the light-harvesting proteins from higher plants.

In the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 five genes were identified with significant sequence similarity to regions of members of the eukaryotic chlorophyll a/b binding gene family (Cab family) and to hliA, a gene coding for a small high-light-induced protein in Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942. Four of these five genes are 174-213 bp in length and code for small proteins predicted to have a single transmembrane helix. The fifth Cab-like gene in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 is much longer and codes for a protein of which the N-terminal 80% resemble ferrochelatase but the C-terminal domain has similarity to Cab regions. The small genes were expressed preferentially in the absence of photosystem I, but gene expression was not significantly enhanced at moderately high light intensity. Therefore they were not designated as hli (high-light-induced) as was done for the Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942 homolog. Instead, the genes have been named scp, as the corresponding polypeptides of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 are small Cab-like proteins (SCP). The scpA gene, which codes for ferrochelatase with a C-terminal Cab-like extension, was interrupted by the insertion of a kanamycin-resistance cassette between the ferrochelatase and Cab-like gene domains. In the PS I-less background, interruption of scpA was found to lead to increased tolerance to high light intensity and to the requirement of a slightly higher light intensity to drive photosystem II electron transfer, suggestive of decreased light-harvesting efficiency in the absence of the C-terminal extension of ScpA. Immunodetection of ScpC and ScpD indicated that either or both accumulated in PS I-less strains. These proteins were also detected in bands of more than 45 kDa on denaturing gels, raising the possibility that they may occur as stable oligomers. The SCPs represent a new group of cyanobacterial proteins that, in view of their primary structure and response to deletion of photosystem I, are likely to be involved in transient pigment binding.     

Effect of increased PHA synthase activity on polyhydroxyalkanoates biosynthesis in Synechocystis sp. PCC6803

Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) synthase activity in Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 was increased two-fold by introducing the PHA biosynthetic genes of Ralstonia eutropha. The resulting recombinant Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 strain was subjected to conditions that favor PHA accumulation and the effects of various carbon sources were studied. In addition, the fine structure of both wild-type and recombinant Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 was examined using freeze-fracture electron microscopy technique. The PHA granules in the recombinant Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 were localised near the thylakoid membranes. Maximum amount of PHA accumulation was obtained in the presence of acetate, where the number of granules in the recombinant cells ranged from 4 to 6 and their sizes were in the range of 70-240 nm. In comparison to wild-type Synechocystis sp. PCC6803, recombinant cells with increased PHA synthase activity showed only a marginal increase in PHA content suggesting that PHA synthase is not the rate limiting enzyme of PHA biosynthesis in Synechocystis sp. PCC6803.     

The role of ApcD and ApcF in energy transfer from phycobilisomes to PS I and PS II in a cyanobacterium

The role of the phycobilisome core components, ApcD and ApcF, in transferring energy from the phycobilisome to PS I and PS II in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 has been investigated. The genes encoding these proteins have been disrupted in the genomes of wild type Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 and a PS II deficient mutant, PsbD1CD2^-, by inserting antibiotic resistance genes into their coding regions. Data from fluorescence emission spectra and pigment content analysis for these inactivation mutants is presented. These data suggest that both ApcD and ApcF are involved in the energy transfer route to PS II and PS I. In both cases, the energy transfer may to the reaction centres may be via the chromophore of ApcE (the L cm) or anchor polypeptide). The major route of energy transfer to both kinds of reaction centre appears to involve ApcF rather than ApcD. When both ApcF and ApcD are absent, the phycobilisomes are unable to transfer energy to either reaction centre. We suggest a model for the pathways of energy transfer from the phycobilisomes to PS I and PS II.