New tools for mitochondrial genetics of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii: manganese mutagenesis and cytoduction

Summary A novel and efficient genetic procedure is described for generating mitochondrial mutants of the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. The development of a mutagenesis procedure using manganese cations and the application of cytoduction techniques resulted in a combined approach for the generation and analysis of mitochondrial mutants. Although mitochondrial mutations are inherited in sexual crosses from the minus mating type parent, the cytoduction technique can be used to transfer mitochondrial mutations into recipient strains with different genetic backgrounds, irrespective of their mating type. Cytoduction allows the transfer of mitochondrial markers from diploid to haploid cells also, which is of great benefit since diploid cells do not germinate in C. reinhardtii. We report here the isolation and characterisation of eight mutants, which are resistant to the antibiotics myxothiazol and mucidin. The mutants all have point mutations in the mitochondrial gene for apocytochrome b. Using in vitro-amplified cytb gene fragments as probes for direct DNA sequencing, three different types of single base pair substitutions were revealed in all mutants tested. In particular, amino acid substitutions in the mutant apocytochrome b polypeptide have been identified at residues 129, 132 and 137, which have been implicated in forming part of an antibiotic-binding niche. The amino acid substitution at position 132 has not been so far described for mutant apocytochrome b in any other organism, prokaryotic or eukaryotic. The genetic approach presented here confirms C. reinhardtii as a model system that is unique among plant cells.