Biogenesis of phycobiliproteins: I. cpcS-I and cpcU mutants of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 define a heterodimeric phyococyanobilin lyase specific for beta-phycocyanin and allophycocyanin subunits

Phycobilin lyases covalently attach phycobilin chromophores to apo-phycobiliproteins (PBPs). Genome analyses of the unicellular, marine cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 identified three genes, denoted cpcS-I, cpcU, and cpcV, that were possible candidates to encode phycocyanobilin (PCB) lyases. Single and double mutant strains for cpcS-I and cpcU exhibited slower growth rates, reduced PBP levels, and impaired assembly of phycobilisomes, but a cpcV mutant had no discernable phenotype. A cpcS-I cpcU cpcT triple mutant was nearly devoid of PBP. SDS-PAGE and mass spectrometry demonstrated that the cpcS-I and cpcU mutants produced an altered form of the phycocyanin (PC) beta subunit, which had a mass approximately 588 Da smaller than the wild-type protein. Some free PCB (mass = 588 Da) was tentatively detected in the phycobilisome fraction purified from the mutants. The modified PC from the cpcS-I, cpcU, and cpcS-I cpcU mutant strains was purified, and biochemical analyses showed that Cys-153 of CpcB carried a PCB chromophore but Cys-82 did not. These results show that both CpcS-I and CpcU are required for covalent attachment of PCB to Cys-82 of the PC beta subunit in this cyanobacterium. Suggesting that CpcS-I and CpcU are also required for attachment of PCB to allophycocyanin subunits in vivo, allophycocyanin levels were significantly reduced in all but the CpcV-less strain. These conclusions have been validated by in vitro experiments described in the accompanying report (Saunée, N. A., Williams, S. R., Bryant, D. A., and Schluchter, W. M. (2008) J. Biol. Chem. 283, 7513-7522). We conclude that the maturation of PBP in vivo depends on three PCB lyases: CpcE-CpcF, CpcS-I-CpcU, and CpcT.     

Identification and characterization of a new class of bilin lyase: the cpcT gene encodes a bilin lyase responsible for attachment of phycocyanobilin to Cys-153 on the beta-subunit of phycocyanin in Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002

Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 and all other cyanobacteria that synthesize phycocyanin have a gene, cpcT, that is paralogous to cpeT, a gene of unknown function affecting phycoerythrin synthesis in Fremyella diplosiphon. A cpcT null mutant contains 40% less phycocyanin than wild type and produces smaller phycobilisomes with red-shifted absorbance and fluorescence emission maxima. Phycocyanin from the cpcT mutant has an absorbance maximum at 634 nm compared with 626 nm for the wild type. The phycocyanin beta-subunit from the cpcT mutant has slightly smaller apparent molecular weight on SDS-PAGE. Purified phycocyanins from the cpcT mutant and wild type were cleaved with formic acid, and the products were analyzed by SDS-PAGE. No phycocyanobilin chromophore was bound to the peptide containing Cys-153 derived from the phycocyanin beta-subunit of the cpcT mutant. Recombinant CpcT was used to perform in vitro bilin addition assays with apophycocyanin (CpcA/CpcB) and phycocyanobilin. Depending on the source of phycocyanobilin, reaction products with CpcT had absorbance maxima between 597 and 603 nm as compared with 638 nm for the control reactions, in which mesobiliverdin becomes covalently bound. After trypsin digestion and reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography, the CpcT reaction product produced one major phycocyanobilin-containing peptide. This peptide had a retention time identical to that of the tryptic peptide that includes phycocyanobilin-bound, cysteine 153 of wild-type phycocyanin. The results from characterization of the cpcT mutant as well as the in vitro biochemical assays demonstrate that CpcT is a new phycocyanobilin lyase that specifically attaches phycocyanobilin to Cys-153 of the phycocyanin beta-subunit.     

CpcM posttranslationally methylates asparagine-71/72 of phycobiliprotein beta subunits in Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 and Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803

Cyanobacteria produce phycobilisomes, which are macromolecular light-harvesting complexes mostly assembled from phycobiliproteins. Phycobiliprotein beta subunits contain a highly conserved gamma-N-methylasparagine residue, which results from the posttranslational modification of Asn71/72. Through comparative genomic analyses, we identified a gene, denoted cpcM, that (i) encodes a protein with sequence similarity to other S-adenosylmethionine-dependent methyltransferases, (ii) is found in all sequenced cyanobacterial genomes, and (iii) often occurs near genes encoding phycobiliproteins in cyanobacterial genomes. The cpcM genes of Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 and Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 were insertionally inactivated. Mass spectrometric analyses of phycobiliproteins isolated from the mutants confirmed that the CpcB, ApcB, and ApcF were 14 Da lighter than their wild-type counterparts. Trypsin digestion and mass analyses of phycobiliproteins isolated from the mutants showed that tryptic peptides from phycocyanin that included Asn72 were also 14 Da lighter than the equivalent peptides from wild-type strains. Thus, CpcM is the methyltransferase that modifies the amide nitrogen of Asn71/72 of CpcB, ApcB, and ApcF. When cells were grown at low light intensity, the cpcM mutants were phenotypically similar to the wild-type strains. However, the mutants were sensitive to high-light stress, and the cpcM mutant of Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 was unable to grow at moderately high light intensities. Fluorescence emission measurements showed that the ability to perform state transitions was impaired in the cpcM mutants and suggested that energy transfer from phycobiliproteins to the photosystems was also less efficient. The possible functions of asparagine N methylation of phycobiliproteins are discussed.     

Physical genome map of the unicellular cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002.

A physical restriction map of the genome of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 was assembled from AscI, NotI, SalI, and SfiI digests of intact genomic DNA separated on a contour-clamped homogeneous electric field pulsed-field gel electrophoresis system. An average genome size of 2.7 x 10(6) bp was calculated from 21 NotI, 37 SalI, or 27 SfiI fragments obtained by the digestions. The genomic map was assembled by using three different strategies: linking clone analysis, pulsed-field fragment hybridization, and individual clone hybridization to singly and doubly restriction-digested large DNA fragments. The relative positions of 21 genes or operons were determined, and these data suggest that the gene order is not highly conserved between Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 and Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120.     

Effects of modified Phycobilin biosynthesis in the Cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. Strain PCC 7002

The pathway for phycocyanobilin biosynthesis in Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 comprises two enzymes: heme oxygenase and phycocyanobilin synthase (PcyA). The phycobilin content of cells can be modified by overexpressing genes encoding alternative enzymes for biliverdin reduction. Overexpression of the pebAB and HY2 genes, encoding alternative ferredoxin-dependent biliverdin reductases, caused unique effects due to the overproduction of phycoerythrobilin and phytochromobilin, respectively. Colonies overexpressing pebAB became reddish brown and visually resembled strains that naturally produce phycoerythrin. This was almost exclusively due to the replacement of phycocyanobilin by phycoerythrobilin on the phycocyanin α-subunit. This phenotype was unstable, and such strains rapidly reverted to the wild-type appearance, presumably due to strong selective pressure to inactivate pebAB expression. Overproduction of phytochromobilin, synthesized by the Arabidopsis thaliana HY2 product, was tolerated much better. Cells overexpressing HY2 were only slightly less pigmented and blue-green than the wild type. Although the pcyA gene could not be inactivated in the wild type, pcyA was easily inactivated when cells expressed HY2. These results indicate that phytochromobilin can functionally substitute for phycocyanobilin in Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002. Although functional phycobilisomes were assembled in this strain, the overall phycobiliprotein content of cells was lower, the efficiency of energy transfer by these phycobilisomes was lower than for wild-type phycobilisomes, and the absorption cross-section of the cells was reduced relative to that of the wild type because of an increased spectral overlap of the modified phycobiliproteins with chlorophyll a. As a result, the strain producing phycobiliproteins carrying phytochromobilin grew much more slowly at low light intensity.     

A novel plasmid recombination mechanism of the marine cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC7002.

We describe a novel mechanism of site-specific recombination in the unicellular marine cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC7002. The specific recombination sites on the smallest plasmid pAQ1 were localized by studying the properties of pAQ1-derived shuttle-vectors. We found that a palindromic element, the core sequence of which is G(G/A)CGATCGCC, functions as a resolution site for site-specific plasmid recombination. Furthermore, site-directed mutagenesis analysis of the element show that the site-specific recombination in the cyanobacterium requires sequence specificity, symmetry in the core sequence and, in part, the spacing between the elements. Interestingly, this element is over-represented not only in pAQ1 and in the genome of the cyanobacterium, but also in the accumulated cyanobacterial sequences from Synechococcus sp. PCC6301, PCC7942, vulcanus and Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 within GenBank and EMBL databases. Thus, these findings strongly suggest that the site-specific recombination mechanism based on the palindromic element should be common in these cyanobacteria.     

人尿激酶原基因在聚球藻7002中的克隆和表达

将人尿激酶原基因连在ＰｐｓｂＡ启动子之后,再将启动子连同基因克隆入整合载体ｐＴＺ１８中。ｐＴＺ１８－８中含有一段来源于集胞藻６８０３的ｐｓｂＢ基因片段作为整合平台。将整合表达载体用直接转化的方法转聚球藻Ｓｙｎｅ－ｃｈｏｃｏｃｃｕｓ ｓｐ．ＰＣＣ７００２中。经氨苄青霉素选前扩大培养后的转化进行ＤＮＡ斑点印迹及Ｗｅｓｔｅｒｎ印迹, 基因的存在及表达,菌体破碎后的上清液有较高的溶解纤维蛋白的活性,说明表     

Attachment of noncognate chromophores to CpcA of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 and Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 by heterologous expression in Escherichia coli

Many cyanobacteria use brilliantly pigmented, multisubunit macromolecular structures known as phycobilisomes as antenna to enhance light harvesting for photosynthesis. Recent studies have defined the enzymes that synthesize phycobilin chromophores as well as many of the phycobilin lyase enzymes that attach these chromophores to their cognate apoproteins. The ability of the phycocyanin α-subunit (CpcA) to bind alternative linear tetrapyrrole chromophores was examined through the use of a heterologous expression system in Escherichia coli. E. coli strains produced phycocyanobilin, phytochromobilin, or phycoerythrobilin when they expressed 3Z-phycocyanobilin:ferredoxin oxidoreductase (PcyA), 3Z-phytochromobilin:ferredoxin oxidoreductase (HY2) from Arabidopsis thaliana, or phycoerythrobilin synthase (PebS) from the myovirus P-SSM4, respectively. CpcA from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 or Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 was coexpressed in these strains with the phycocyanin α-subunit phycocyanobilin lyase, CpcE/CpcF, or the phycoerythrocyanin α-subunit phycocyanobilin isomerizing lyase, PecE/PecF, from Noctoc sp. PCC 7120. Both lyases were capable of attaching three different linear tetrapyrrole chromophores to CpcA; thus, up to six different CpcA variants, each with a unique chromophore, could be produced with this system. One of these chromophores, denoted phytoviolobilin, has not yet been observed naturally. The recombinant proteins had unexpected and potentially useful properties, which included very high fluorescence quantum yields and photochemical activity. Chimeric lyases PecE/CpcF and CpcE/PecF were used to show that the isomerizing activity that converts phycocyanobilin to phycoviolobilin resides with PecF and not PecE. Finally, spectroscopic properties of recombinant phycocyanin R-PCIII, in which the CpcA subunits carry a phycoerythrobilin chromophore, are described.     

Growth on Urea Can Trigger Death and Peroxidation of the Cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. Strain PCC 7002

Laboratory conditions have been identified that cause the rapid death of cultures of cyanobacteria producing urease. Once the death phase had initiated in the stationary growth phase, cells were rapidly bleached of all pigmentation. Null mutations in the ureC gene, encoding the alpha subunit of urease, were constructed, and these mutants were no longer sensitive to growth in the presence of urea. High levels of peroxides, including lipid peroxides, were detected in the bleaching cells. Exogenously added polyunsaturated fatty acids triggered a similar death response. Vitamin E suppressed the formation of peroxides and delayed the onset of cell bleaching. The results suggest that these cyanobacterial cells undergo a metabolic imbalance that ultimately leads to oxidative stress and lipid peroxide formation. These observations may provide insights into the mechanism of sudden cyanobacterial bloom disappearance in nature.     

Molecular cloning and characterization of the recA gene from the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002.

The recA gene of Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 was detected and cloned from a lambda gtwes genomic library by heterologous hybridization by using a gene-internal fragment of the Escherichia coli recA gene as the probe. The gene encodes a 38-kilodalton polypeptide which is antigenically related to the RecA protein of E. coli. The nucleotide sequence of a portion of the gene was determined. The translation of this region was 55% homologous to the E. coli protein; allowances for conservative amino acid replacements yield a homology value of about 74%. The cyanobacterial recA gene product was proficient in restoring homologous recombination and partial resistance to UV irradiation to recA mutants of E. coli. Heterologous hybridization experiments, in which the Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 recA gene was used as the probe, indicate that a homologous gene is probably present in all cyanobacterial strains.     

Harvesting far-red light: Functional integration of chlorophyll f into Photosystem I complexes of Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002

The heterologous expression of the far-red absorbing chlorophyll (Chl) f in organisms that do not synthesize this pigment has been suggested as a viable solution to expand the solar spectrum that drives oxygenic photosynthesis. In this study, we investigate the functional binding of Chl f to the Photosystem I (PSI) of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus 7002, which has been engineered to express the Chl f synthase gene. By optimizing growth light conditions, one-to-four Chl f pigments were found in the complexes. By using a range of spectroscopic techniques, isolated PSI trimeric complexes were investigated to determine how the insertion of Chl f affects excitation energy transfer and trapping efficiency. The results show that the Chls f are functionally connected to the reaction center of the PSI complex and their presence does not change the overall pigment organization of the complex. Chl f substitutes Chl a (but not the Chl a red forms) while maintaining efficient energy transfer within the PSI complex. At the same time, the introduction of Chl f extends the photosynthetically active radiation of the new hybrid PSI complexes up to 750 nm, which is advantageous in far-red light enriched environments. These conclusions provide insights to engineer the photosynthetic machinery of crops to include Chl f and therefore increase the light-harvesting capability of photosynthesis.     

Biogenesis and Ultrastructure of Carboxysomes from Wild Type and Mutants of Synechococcus sp. Strain PCC 7942

Immature inclusions representing three progressive steps of carboxysome biogenesis have been identified in Synechococcus during the period of adaptation to low-CO2 conditions: (a) ring-shaped structures, (b) electron-translucent inclusions with the shape of a carboxysome and the internal orderly arrangement of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase (Rubisco) molecules, and (c) carboxysomes with an internal electron-translucent area, which seem to be the penultimate stage of carboxysome maturation. The ability to build up normal carboxysomes is impaired in three (M3, EK6, and D4) of four high-carbon-requiring mutants studied in this work. M3 and EK6 exhibit abundant immature electron-translucent carboxysomes but no mature ones. This finding supports the contention that an open reading frame located 7.5 kb upstream of the gene encoding the large subunit of Rubisco (altered in M3) is involved in the carboxysome composition and confirms the structural role of the small subunit of Rubisco (slightly modified in EK6) in the assembly of these structures. D4 shows few typical carboxysomes and frequent immature types, its genetic lesion affecting the apparently unrelated gene encoding a subunit of phosphoribosyl aminoamidazole carboxylase of the purine biosynthesis pathway. Revertants EK20 (EK6) and RK13 (D4) have normal carboxysomes, which means that the restoration of the ability to grow under low CO2 coincides with the proper assembling of these structures. N5, a transport mutant due to the alteration of the gene encoding subunit 2 of NADH dehydrogenase, shows an increase in the number and size of carboxysomes and frequent bar-shaped ones.     

Molecular cloning and nucleotide sequence of the psaA and psaB genes of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002

The psaA and psaB genes, which encode the P700 chlorophyll a apoproteins of the Photosystem I complex, have been cloned from the unicellular, transformable cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002. The nucleotide sequence of these genes and of their flanking sequences have been determined by the chain termination method. As found in the chloroplast genomes of higher plants, the psaA gene lies 5 to the psaB gene; however, the cyanobacterial genes are separated by a greater distance (173 vs. 25–26 bp). The psaA gene is predicted to encode a polypeptide of 739 amino acid residues (81.7 kDa), and the psaB gene is predicted to encode a polypeptide of 733 residues (81.4 kDa). The cyanobacterial psa gene products are 76% to 81% identical to their higher plant homologues; moreover, because of conservative amino acid replacements, the cyanobacterial sequences are more than 95% homologous to those determined for higher plants. These results provide the basis for a genetic analysis of Photosystem I, and are discussed in relationship to structural and functional aspects of the Photosystem I complexes of both cyanobacteria and higher plants.     

Anchoring a Plant Cytochrome P450 via PsaM to the Thylakoids in Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002: Evidence for Light-Driven Biosynthesis

Plants produce an immense variety of specialized metabolites, many of which are of high value as their bioactive properties make them useful as for instance pharmaceuticals. The compounds are often produced at low levels in the plant, and due to their complex structures, chemical synthesis may not be feasible. Here, we take advantage of the reducing equivalents generated in photosynthesis in developing an approach for producing plant bioactive natural compounds in a photosynthetic microorganism by functionally coupling a biosynthetic enzyme to photosystem I. This enables driving of the enzymatic reactions with electrons extracted from the photosynthetic electron transport chain. As a proof of concept, we have genetically fused the soluble catalytic domain of the cytochrome P450 CYP79A1, originating from the endoplasmic reticulum membranes of Sorghum bicolor, to a photosystem I subunit in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002, thereby targeting it to the thylakoids. The engineered enzyme showed light-driven activity both in vivo and in vitro, demonstrating the possibility to achieve light-driven biosynthesis of high-value plant specialized metabolites in cyanobacteria.     

Kinetic analyses of state transitions of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 and its mutant strains impaired in electron transport

The state transitions of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 and of three mutant strains, which were impaired in PsaE-dependent cyclic electron transport (psaE(-)), respiratory electron transport (ndhF(-)) and both activities (psaE(-)ndhF(-)), were analyzed. Dark incubation of the wild type and psaE(-) cells led to a transition to state 2, while the ndhF(-) strains remained in state 1 after dark incubation. The ndhF(-) cells adapted to state 2 when the cells were incubated under anaerobic conditions or in the presence of potassium cyanide; these results suggest that the ndhF(-) cells were inefficient in performing state 1 to state 2 transitions in the dark unless cytochrome oxidase activity was inhibited. In the state 2 to state 1 transition of wild-type cells induced by light in the presence of 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea (DCMU), there was still a significant reduction of the interphotosystem electron carriers by both respiration and cyclic electron flow around PSI. Kinetic analysis of the state 2 to state 1 transition shows that, in the absence of PSII activity, the relative contribution to the reduced state of the interphotosystem electron carriers by respiratory and cyclic electron transfer is about 72% and 28%, respectively. The state 2 to state 1 transition was prevented by the cytochrome b(6)f inhibitor 2,5-dibromo-3-methyl-6-isopropylbenzoquinone (DBMIB). On the other hand, the state 1 to state 2 transition was induced by DBMIB with half times of approximately 8 s in all strains. The externally added electron acceptor 2,5-dimethyl-benzoquinone (DMBQ) induced a state 2 to state 1 transition in the dark and this transition could be prevented by DBMIB. The light-induced oxidation of P700 showed that approximately 50% of PSI could be excited by 630-nm light absorbed by phycobilisomes (PBS) under state 2 conditions. P700 oxidation measurements with light absorbed by PBS also showed that the dark-induced state 1 to state 2 transition occurred in wild-type cells but not in the ndhF(-) cells. The possible mechanism for sensing an imbalanced light regime in cyanobacterial state transitions is discussed.     

Isolation and characterization of the ndhF gene of Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 and initial characterization of an interposon mutant.

The ndhF gene of the unicellular marine cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 was cloned and characterized. NdhF is a subunit of the type 1, multisubunit NADH:plastoquinone oxidoreductase (NADH dehydrogenase). The nucleotide sequence of the gene predicts an extremely hydrophobic protein of 664 amino acids with a calculated mass of 72.9 kDa. The ndhF gene was shown to be single copy and transcribed into a monocistronic mRNA of 2,300 nucleotides. An ndhF null mutation was successfully constructed by interposon mutagenesis, demonstrating that NdhF is not required for cell viability under photoautotrophic growth conditions. The mutant strain exhibited a negligible rate of oxygen uptake in the dark, but its photosynthetic properties (oxygen evolution, chlorophyll/P700 ratio, and chlorophyll/P680 ratio) were generally similar to those of the wild type. Although the ndhF mutant strain grew as rapidly as the wild-type strain at high light intensity, the mutant grew more slowly than the wild type at lower light intensities and did not grow at all under photoheterotrophic conditions. The roles of the NADH:plastoquinone oxidoreductase in photosynthetic and respiratory electron transport are discussed.