Genetic and biochemical evidence for distinct key functions of two highly divergent GAPDH genes in catabolic and anabolic carbon flow of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

Cyanobacterial genomes harbour two separate highly divergent glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) genes, gap1 and gap2, which are closely related at the sequence level to the nuclear genes encoding cytosolic and chloroplast GAPDH of higher plants, respectively. Genes gap1 and gap2 of the unicellular cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 were cloned and sequenced and subsequently inactivated by insertional mutagenesis to understand their metabolic functions. We obtained homozygous gap1^- mutants which have lost the capacity to grow on glucose under dim light while growth on organic acids as well as photosynthetic growth under CO₂ and high light is not impaired. Homozygous gap2^- mutants show the reciprocal phenotype. Under dim light they only grow on glucose but not on organic acids nor do they survive under photosynthetic conditions. Measurements of the anabolic activities (reduction of 1,3-bisphosphoglycerate) in extracts from wild type and mutant cells show that Gap2 is a major enzyme with dual cosubstrate specificity for NAD and NADP, while Gap1 displays a minor NAD-specific GAPDH activity. However, if measured in the catabolic direction (oxidation of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate) Gap2 activity is very low and increases three- to fivefold after gel filtration of extracts over Sephadex G25. Our results suggest that enzymes Gap1 and Gap2, although coexpressed in cyanobacterial wild-type cells, play distinct key roles in catabolic and anabolic carbon flow, respectively. While Gap2 operates in the photosynthetic Calvin cycle and in non-photosynthetic gluconeogenesis, Gap1 seems to be essential only for glycolytic glucose breakdown, conditions under which the catabolic activity of Gap2 seems to be repressed by a specific low-molecular-weight inhibitor.     

Immunoelectron Microscopy for Locating Calvin Cycle Enzymes in the Thylakoids of Synechocystis 6803

Unicellular cyanobacteria Synechocystis 6803 were fixed using high-pressure freezing （HPF） and freeze substitution without any chemical cross-linkers. Immunoelectron microscopy of these cells showed that five sequential enzymes of the Calvin cycle （phosphoriboisomerase, phosphoribulokinase, ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase （RuBisCO）, 3-phosphoglyceratekinase and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase） and the catalytic portion of the chloroplast H^＋-ATP synthase （CF1） are located adjacent to the thylakoid membranes. Cell-free extracts of Synechocystis were processed by ultracentrifugation to isolate thylakoid fractions sedimenting at 40 000, 90 000, and 150 000 g. Among these, the 150 000-g fraction showed the highest linked activity of the above five sequential Calvin cycle enzymes and also the highest coordinated activity of light and dark reactions as assessed by ribose-5-phosphate （R-5-P） ＋ADP dependent CO2 fixation. Immunogold labeling of this membrane fraction confirmed the presence of the above five enzymes as well as the catalytic portion of the CF1 ATP synthase. Notably, the protein A-gold labeling of the thylakoids was observed without use of chemical cross-linkers and in spite of the normal washing steps used during standard immunolabeling. The results showed that soluble Calvin cycle enzymes might be organized along the thylakoid membranes.     

Possibilities of subunit localization with fluorescent protein tags and electron microscopy examplified by a cyanobacterial NDH-1 study

Cyanobacterial NDH-1 is a multisubunit complex involved in proton translocation, cyclic electron flow around photosystem I and CO₂ uptake. The function and location of several of its small subunits are unknown. In this work, the location of the small subunits NdhL, -M, -N, -O and CupS of Synechocystis 6803 NDH-1 was established by electron microscopy (EM) and single particle analysis. To perform this, the subunits were enlarged by fusion with the YFP protein. After classification of projections, the position of the YFP tag was revealed; all five subunits are integrated in the membrane domain. The results on NDH-1 demonstrate that a GFP tag can be revealed after data processing of EM data sets of moderate size, thus showing that this way of labeling is a fast and reliable way for subunit mapping in multisubunit complexes after partial purification.     

Functional identification of sll1383 from<Emphasis Type="Italic"> Synechocystis</Emphasis> sp PCC 6803 as L-<Emphasis Type="Italic">myo</Emphasis>-inositol 1-phosphate phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.25): molecular cloning,expression and characterization

The genome sequence of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 revealed four Open reading frame (ORF) encoding putative inositol monophosphatase or inositol monophosphatase-like proteins. One of the ORFs, sll1383, is ∼870 base pair long and has been assigned as a probable myo-inositol 1 (or 4) monophosphatase (IMPase; EC 3.1.3.25). IMPase is the second enzyme in the inositol biosynthesis pathway and catalyses the conversion of L-myo-inositol 1-phosphate to free myo-inositol. The present work describes the functional assignment of ORF sll1383 as myo-inositol 1-phosphate phosphatase (IMPase) through molecular cloning, bacterial overexpression, purification and biochemical characterization of the gene product. Affinity (K _m) of the recombinant protein for the substrate DL-myo-inositol 1-phosphate was found to be much higher (0.0034 ± 0.0003 mM) compared to IMPase(s) from other sources but in comparison V _max (∼0.033 μmol Pi/min/mg protein) was low. Li⁺ was found to be an inhibitor (IC₅₀ 6.0 mM) of this enzyme, other monovalent metal ions (e.g. Na⁺, K⁺ NH₄⁺) having no significant effect on the enzyme activity. Like other IMPase(s), the activity of this enzyme was found to be totally Mg²⁺ dependent, which can be substituted partially by Mn²⁺. However, unlike other IMPase(s), the enzyme is optimally active at ∼42°C. To the best of our knowledge, sll1383 encoded IMPase has the highest substrate affinity and specificity amongst the known examples from other prokaryotic sources. A possible application of this recombinant protein in the enzymatic coupled assay of L-myo-inositol 1-phosphate synthase (MIPS) is discussed.     

Paired cloning vectors for complementation of mutations in the cyanobacterium<Emphasis Type="Italic"> Anabaena</Emphasis> sp. strain PCC 7120

The clones generated in a sequencing project represent a resource for subsequent analysis of the organism whose genome has been sequenced. We describe an interrelated group of cloning vectors that either integrate into the genome or replicate, and that enhance the utility, for developmental and other studies, of the clones used to determine the genomic sequence of the cyanobacterium, Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120. One integrating vector is a mobilizable BAC vector that was used both to generate bridging clones and to complement transposon mutations. Upon addition of a cassette that permits mobilization and selection, pUC-based sequencing clones can also integrate into the genome and thereupon complement transposon mutations. The replicating vectors are based on cyanobacterial plasmid pDU1, whose sequence we report, and on broad-host-range plasmid RSF1010. The RSF1010- and pDU1-based vectors provide the opportunity to express different genes from either cell-type-specific or -generalist promoters, simultaneously from different plasmids in the same cyanobacterial cells. We show that pDU1 ORF4 and its upstream region play an essential role in the replication and copy number of pDU1, and that ORFs alr2887 and alr3546 (hetF _A ) of Anabaena sp. are required specifically for fixation of dinitrogen under oxic conditions.     

Evaluation of central metabolism based on a genomic database of<Emphasis Type="Italic">Synechocystis</Emphasis> PCC6803

Cyanobacteria produce industrially important secondary metabolites such as lipopeptide, oligosaccharide, fatty acid (esp. sulfolipid),etc. Among them,Synechocystis PCC6803 is the first strain with a publicly available full genome sequence, as of 1996, and is one of the most extensively studied photosynthetic microorganisms. Using this genomic information, the central metabolism ofSynechocystis PCC6803 was reconstructed, including photosynthesis, oxidative phosphorylation, glycolysis, pyruvate metabolism, TCA cycle, carbon fixation, and transport system. Each biochemical reaction was carefully incorporated into the model, taking into consideration the metabolite formula, stoichiometry, charge balance, and thermodynamic properties using information from genomic and metabolic databases as well as biochemical literature. The metabolic flux of the model was calculated using flux balance analysis according to its cultivation with various carbon sources. The results of simulation were in accordance with experimental data, which suggests that the central metabolism model can properly estimate the behavior ofSynechocystis PCC6803. This model would aid in the understanding of the whole cell metabolism ofSynechocystis PCC6803, the first effort of its kind for photosynthetic bacteria.     

A large-scale protein protein interaction analysis in Synechocystis sp. PCC6803.

Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) play crucial roles in protein function for a variety of biological processes. Data from large-scale PPI screening has contributed to understanding the function of a large number of predicted genes from fully sequenced genomes. Here, we report the systematic identification of protein interactions for the unicellular cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC6803. Using a modified high-throughput yeast two-hybrid assay, we screened 1825 genes selected primarily from (i) genes of two-component signal transducers of Synechocystis, (ii) Synechocystis genes whose homologues are conserved in the genome of Arabidopsis thaliana, and (iii) genes of unknown function on the Synechocystis chromosome. A total of 3236 independent two-hybrid interactions involving 1920 proteins (52% of the total protein coding genes) were identified and each interaction was evaluated using an interaction generality (IG) measure, as well as the general features of interacting partners. The interaction data obtained in this study should provide new insights and novel strategies for functional analyses of genes in Synechocystis, and, additionally, genes in other cyanobacteria and plant genes of cyanobacterial origin.     

Signal transduction pathways in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 and biotechnological implications under abiotic stress

Cyanobacteria have developed various response mechanisms in long evolution to sense and adapt to external or internal changes under abiotic stresses. The signal transduction system of a model cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 includes mainly two-component signal transduction systems of eukaryotic-type serine/threonine kinases (STKs), on which most have been investigated at present. These two-component systems play a major role in regulating cell activities in cyanobacteria. More and more co-regulation and crosstalk regulations among signal transduction systems had been discovered due to increasing experimental data, and they are of great importance in corresponding to abiotic stresses. However, mechanisms of their functions remain unknown. Nevertheless, the two signal transduction systems function as an integral network for adaption in different abiotic stresses. This review summarizes available knowledge on the signal transduction network in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 and biotechnological implications under various stresses, with focuses on the co-regulation and crosstalk regulations among various stress-responding signal transduction systems.