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Nucleotide sequence of the gene encoding the 33 kDa water oxidizing polypeptide in Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120 and its expression in Escherichia coli.

The 33 kDa extrinsic polypeptide of photosystem II, also known as the manganese-stabilizing polypeptide (MSP), is located on the lumen side of the thylakoid and is involved in water oxidation. The gene for MSP, designated woxA, has been cloned from the nitrogen-fixing filamentous cyanobacterium Anabaena and sequenced. The woxA open reading frame was found to be 819 bp. The deduced amino acid sequence was 63% and 59% homologous with that of Synechococcus and Synechocystis, respectively, and 44% conserved when compared to the MSP of spinach or pea. Two cysteine residues at positions 48 and 73 were found to be conserved in cyanobacteria and plants. The first 29 amino acids are hydrophobic and may represent the transit peptide. woxA: :phoA translational fusion products, in which the body of Escherichia coli alkaline phosphatase was fused to the amino terminal portion of woxA between residues 35 and 130, yielded active alkaline phosphatase in E. coli. Thus the transit peptide of woxA functions in E. coli to transport phosphatase across the cytoplasmic membrane. S1 mapping and primer extension experiments showed that the woxA transcription initiation site is located 220 bp upstream from the translational start. The woxA promoter has some resemblance to the E. coli consensus and other known Anabaena vegetative cell promoters.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

The molecular basis of resistance to the herbicide norflurazon.

We have cloned and sequenced a gene, pds, from the cyanobacterium Synechococcus PCC7942 that is responsible for resistance to the bleaching herbicide norflurazon. A point mutation in that gene, leading to an amino acid substitution from valine to glycine in its polypeptide product, was found to confer this resistance. Previous studies with herbicide-resistant mutants have indicated that this gene encodes phytoene desaturase (PDS), a key enzyme in the biosynthesis of carotenoids. A short amino acid sequence that is homologous to conserved motifs in the binding sites for NAD(H) and NADP(H) was identified in PDS, suggesting the involvement of these dinucleotides as cofactors in phytoene desaturation.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Nucleotide sequence and homology comparison of two genes of the sulfate transport operon from the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803.

The genome of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 contains an operon with homology to the sulfate permease of other prokaryotes. We used antibodies raised against cytoplasmic membrane protein to find three genes with strong homology to sbpA, orf81 and cysT genes of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium and Marchantia polymorpha. It is likely that the permease genes are expressed and the proteins are inserted into the cytoplasmic membrane.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Characterization of the single psbA gene of Prochlorococcus marinus CCMP 1375 (Prochlorophyta).

DNA sequence, copy number, expression and phylogenetic relevance of the psbA gene from the abundant marine prokaryote P. marinus CCMP 1375 was analyzed. The 7 amino acids near the C-terminus missing in higher plant and in Prochlorothrix hollandica D1 proteins are present in the derived amino acid sequence. P. marinus contains only a single psbA gene. Thus, this organism lacks the ability to adapt its photosystem II by replacement of one type of D1 by another, as several cyanobacteria do. Phylogenetic trees suggested the D1-1 iso-form from Synechococcus PCC 7942 as the next related D1 protein and place P. marinus separately from Prochlorothrix hollandica among the cyanobacteria.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Cloning and characterisation of genes for tetrapyrrole biosynthesis from the cyanobacterium Anacystis nidulans R2.

The genes for 5-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALAD) and uroporphyrinogen III synthase (UROS), two enzymes in the biosynthetic pathway for tetrapyrroles, were independently isolated from a plasmid-based genomic library of Anacystis nidulans R2 (also called Synechococcus sp. PCC7942), by their ability to complement Escherichia coli strains carrying mutations in the equivalent genes (hemB and hemD respectively). The identity of the genes was confirmed by comparing the appropriate enzyme activities in complemented and mutant strains. Subclones of the original plasmids that were also capable of complementing the mutants were sequenced. The inferred amino acid sequence of the cyanobacterial HemB protein indicates a significant difference in the metal cofactor requirement from the higher-plant enzymes, which was confirmed by overexpression and biochemical analysis. The organisation of the cyanobacterial hemD locus differs markedly from other prokaryotes. Two open reading frames were found immediately upstream of hemD. The product of one shows considerable similarity to published sequences from other organisms for uroporphyrinogen III methylase (UROM), an enzyme involved in the production of sirohaem and cobalamins (including vitamin B-12). The product of the other shows motifs which are similar to those found in proteins responsible for metabolic regulation in yeast and indicates that this family of transcription control proteins, which has previously been reported only from eukaryotes, is also represented in prokaryotes.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Identification of a second psaC gene in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC6803.

The psaC gene encodes the 9 kDa protein subunit of photosystem I that carries the iron-sulfur centers FA and FB. The paper describes the sequence and transcription analysis of a second psaC gene (psaC2) from Synechocystis sp. PCC6803. ThepsaC2 gene is transcribed into an abundant monocistronic mRNA. The deduced amino acid sequence of PSI-C2 is very similar to the protein sequences from two other cyanobacteria (Synechococcus sp. PCC7002 and Nostoc sp. PCC8009). In contrast, the recently isolated psaC1 gene is not transcribed and the PSI-C1 amino acid sequence shows the highest similarity to the proteins from higher plants.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Heat shock protein synthesis of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis PCC 6803: purification of the GroEL-related chaperonin.

Synechocystis PCC 6803 cells could be induced to synthesize four major HSPs with apparent molecular sizes of 70, 64, 15 and 14 kDa. Heat stress at 42.5 degrees C appeared to be the optimum temperature for HSP formation in cells grown at 30 degrees C. The relative rate of synthesis of HSP70 and HSP15 reached a maximum at 30 min after the temperature shift-up whereas the capability of cells to accumulate HSP64 and HSP14 continued through 2 h. The two most abundant HSPs, HSP70 and HSP64, were recognized on western blots by antibodies raised against authentic DnaK and GroEL from Escherichia coli. To furnish sufficient evidence for the assumption that HSP64 is a GroEL-related chaperonin, this protein was purified to homogeneity. There was a 76% sequence identity between the amino acid sequence of HSP64 and the corresponding protein in Synechococcus PCC 7942. Moreover, the purified HSP64 cross-reacted to anti-E. coli GroEL antibody. To our knowledge, this is the first report about the purification and partial protein sequencing of a cyanobacterial chaperonin.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Cloning of omega 3 desaturase from cyanobacteria and its use in altering the degree of membrane-lipid unsaturation.

Cyanobacteria respond to a decrease in temperature by desaturating fatty acids of membrane lipids to compensate for the decrease in membrane fluidity. Among various desaturation reactions in cyanobacteria, the desaturation of the omega 3 position of fatty acids is the most sensitive to the change in temperature. In the present study, we isolated a gene, designated desB, for the omega 3 desaturase from the cyanobacterium, Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. The desB gene encodes a protein a 359 amino-acid residues with molecular mass of 41.9 kDa. The desB gene is transcribed as a monocistronic operon that produced a single transcript of 1.4 kb. The level of the desB transcript in cells grown at 22 degrees C was 10 times higher than that in cells grown at 34 degrees C. In order to manipulate the fatty-acid unsaturation of membrane lipids, the desB gene in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 was mutated by insertion of a kanamycin-resistance gene cartridge. The resultant mutant was unable to desaturate fatty acids at the omega 3 position. The desA gene, which encodes the delta 12 desaturase of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, and the desB gene were introduced into Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942. Whilst the parent cyanobacterium can only desaturate membrane lipids at the delta 9 position of fatty acids, the resultant transformant was able to desaturate fatty acids of membrane lipids at the delta 9, delta 12 and omega 3 positions. These results confirm the function of the desB gene and demonstrate that it is possible to genetically manipulate the fatty-acid unsaturation of membrane lipids in cyanobacteria.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Structure and mutation of a gene encoding a Mr 33,000 phycocyanin-associated linker polypeptide.

The gene encoding a phycocyanin-associated linker polypeptide of Mr 33,000 from the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 was found to be located adjacent and 3' to the genes encoding the alpha and beta subunits of phycocyanin. The identity of this gene, designated cpcC, was proven by matching the amino-terminal sequence of the authentic polypeptide with that predicted by the nucleotide sequence. A cpcC mutant strain of this cyanobacterium was constructed. The effect of the mutation was to prevent assembly of half the total phycocyanin into phycobilisomes. By electron microscopy, phycobilisomes from this mutant were shown to contain rod substructures composed of a single disc of hexameric phycocyanin, as opposed to two discs in the wild type. It was concluded that the Mr 33,000 linker polypeptide is required for attachment of the core-distal phycocyanin hexamer to the core-proximal one. Using absorption spectra of the wild type, CpcC-, and phycocyanin-less phycobilisomes, the in situ absorbances expected for specific phycocyanin-linker complexes were calculated. These data confirm earlier findings on isolated complexes regarding the influence of linkers on the spectroscopic properties of phycocyanin.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Structural genes of glutamate 1-semialdehyde aminotransferase for porphyrin synthesis in a cyanobacterium and Escherichia coli.

In bacteria 5-aminolevulinate, the universal precursor in the biosynthesis of the porphyrin nucleus of hemes, chlorophylls and bilins is synthesised by two different pathways: in non-sulphur purple bacteria (Rhodobacter) or Rhizobium 5-aminolevulinate synthase condenses glycine and succinyl-CoA into 5-aminolevulinate as is the case in mammalian cells and yeast. In cyanobacteria, green and purple sulphur bacteria, as in chloroplasts of higher plants and algae a three step pathway converts glutamate into 5-aminolevulinate. The last step is the conversion of glutamate 1-semialdehyde into 5-aminolevulinate. Using a cDNA clone encoding glutamate 1-semialdehyde aminotransferase from barley, genes for this enzyme were cloned from Synechococcus PCC6301 and Escherichia coli and sequenced. The popC gene of E. coli, previously considered to encode 5-aminolevulinate synthase, appears to be a structural gene for glutamate 1-semialdehyde aminotransferase. Domains with identical amino acid sequences comprise 48% of the primary structure of the barley, cyanobacterial and putative E. coli glutamate 1-semialdehyde aminotransferases. The cyanobacterial and barley enzymes share 72% identical residues. The peptide containing a likely pyridoxamine phosphate binding lysine is conserved in all three protein sequences.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Structure and expression of a plastid-encoded groEL homologous heat-shock gene in a thermophilic unicellular red alga.

A gene homologous to the E. coli groEL locus was identified on the plastid genome of the unicellular red alga Cyanidium caldarium strain 14-1-1 (synonym: Galdieria sulphuraria). The complete nucleotide sequence was determined and compared to bacterial- and nuclear-encoded counterparts of higher plants. At the amino-acid level the C. caldarium gene shows 70% homology to the corresponding gene of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus and 52% homology to nuclear-encoded counterparts of higher plants, respectively. Northern and Western blot experiments were used to investigate the dependence of the transcript- and protein-level on culture temperature and heat shock.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Lactate dehydrogenases in cyanobacteria.

NAD-linked lactate dehydrogenases specific for the D- and L-lactate have been demonstrated in a number of strains of unicellular cyanobacteria. The D-lactate dehydrogenase of one strain (Synechococcus 6716) was partially purified and its properties were studied. The enzyme has a molecular weight of ca. 115000-120000, is highly specific, autooxidizable, and susceptible to inhibition by iodoacetamide, oxamate and ATP. The possible physiological functions of the enzyme in the metabolism of the organism were investigated. D-lactate carbon was incorporated in cell material during photosynthetic growth with CO2, but lactate was not used as sole source for carbon for photosynthetic or chemosynthetic development. D-lactate and pyruvate were oxidized aerobically in the dark by resting cell suspensions with the assimilation mainly of the C2 and the C3 carbon atoms. In the oxidation of lactate, acetate was excreted into the medium. No fermentation of glucose was found, but a small amount of D-lactate was detected as a product of endogenous dark metabolism of the cell. All enzymes required for the production of lactate from glucose and from glycogen were found in exponentially growing cells, but the activity of some key enzymes was low or undetectable in old cultures.

Acetates↗

Metronidazole and the isolation of temperature-sensitive photosynthetic mutants in cyanobacteria.

A procedure has been developed for use of metronidazole (2-methyl-5-nitroimidazole-1-ethanol) as an enrichment agent during the isolation of temperature-sensitive, photosynthetic mutants in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus cedrorum. The protocol includes incubation with this drug following mutagenesis with N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine. Incubation of photosynthetically active S. cedrorum cells with 1 mM metronidazole causes a light-dependent reduction of cell viability. Maximum reduction in cell viability occurred following 6 h of incubation. Cessation of electron transport reduced the impact of the drug by five orders of magnitude. Yet during the time of incubation, metronidazole did not influence the electron transport capacities of the S. cedrorum cells, suggesting that the thylakoid membrane was not the target of the toxic effects of this drug. In addition, this drug was found to be an effective electron acceptor to photosystem I although high concentrations were required to observe maximum rates of electron transfer. Metronidazole interacted in a noncompetitive manner with methyl viologen, which suggested that those two acceptors to photosystem I have unique reduction sites on the S. cedrorum thylakoid membrane. The temperature-sensitive strains that were isolated using the procedure presented here were assessed for photosynthetic electron transport and chlorophyll fluorescence (induction kinetics and low-temperature emission spectra) characteristics. Approximately one-half of the temperature-sensitive mutants isolated possessed abnormal photosynthetic properties when shifted to the restrictive temperature (40 degrees C). A total of 31 throughout the photosynthetic electron-transport chain.

Cyanobacteria↗

Construction of Zn2+/Cd(2+)-tolerant cyanobacteria with a modified metallothionein divergon: further analysis of the function and regulation of smt.

This paper reports the (de novo) construction of mutants of Synechococcus PCC 7942 lacking the repressor (SmtB) of the metallothionein gene, smtA. These smtA+/B- cells are more tolerant to elevated [Zn2+] and [Cd2+] than cells containing an intact metallothionein divergon (smt). Previously selected (by step-wise adaptation) Cd(2+)-tolerant mutants contain additional copies of smtA and possibly other undetected mutations. It is now confirmed that these cells also contain a deletion within 'all' copies of smtB and hence fail to revert to wild type following subculture in medium which has not been supplemented with Cd2+ or Zn2+. Northern analysis showed enhanced accumulation of smtA transcripts, even in the absence of added metal ions in these mutants. An increase in the accumulation of Zn2+ is reported in cells containing an intact metallothionein divergon compared to cells deficient in both smtA and smtB. This supports the assumption that SmtA binds Zn2+ within cyanobacterial cells. We also describe the use of the above mentioned mutants to identify additional factors involved in the regulation of transcription from the smtA operator-promoter.

Bacterial Proteins↗

The evolution of glutathione metabolism in phototrophic microorganisms.

Of the many roles ascribed to glutathione (GSH) the one most clearly established is its role in the protection of higher eucaryotes against oxygen toxicity through destruction of thiol-reactive oxygen byproducts. If this is the primary function of GSH then GSH metabolism should have evolved during or after the evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis. That many bacteria do not produce GSH is consistent with this view. In the present study we have examined the low-molecular-weight thiol composition of a variety of phototrophic microorganisms to ascertain how evolution of GSH production is related to evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis. Cells were extracted in the presence of monobromobimane (mBBr) to convert thiols to fluorescent derivatives, which were analyzed by high-pressure liquid chromatography. Significant levels of GSH were not found in the green bacteria (Chlorobium thiosulfatophilum and Chloroflexus aurantiacus). Substantial levels of GSH were present in the purple bacteria (Chromatium vinosum, Rhodospirillum rubrum, Rhodobacter sphaeroides, and Rhodocyclus gelatinosa), the cyanobacteria [Anacystis nidulans, Microcoleus chthonoplastes S.G., Nostoc muscorum, Oscillatoria amphigranulata, Oscillatoria limnetica, Oscillatoria sp. (Stinky Spring, Utah), Oscillatoria terebriformis, Plectonema boryanum, and Synechococcus lividus], and eucaryotic algae (Chlorella pyrenoidsa, Chlorella vulgaris, Euglena gracilis, Scenedesmus obliquus, and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii). Other thiols measured included cysteine, gamma-glutamylcysteine, thiosulfate, coenzyme A, and sulfide; several unidentified thiols were also detected. Many of the organisms examined also exhibited a marked ability to reduce mBBr to syn-(methyl,methyl)bimane, an ability that was quenched by treatment with 2-pyridyl disulfide or 5,5'-bisdithio-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) prior to reaction with mBBr. These observations indicate the presence of a reducing system capable of electron transfer to mBBr and reduction of reactive disulfides. The distribution of GSH in phototrophic eubacteria indicates that GSH synthesis evolved at or around the time that oxygenic photosynthesis evolved.

Bacteria↗

Electrogenicity at the donor/acceptor sides of cyanobacterial photosystem I.

To study electrogenesis the photosystem I particles from Synechococcus elongatus were incorporated into asolectin liposomes, and fast kinetics of laser flash-induced electric potential difference generation has been measured by a direct electrometric method in proteoliposomes absorbed on a phospholipid-impregnated collodion film. The photoelectric response has been found to involve three electrogenic stages associated with (i) iron-sulfur center Fx reduction by the primary electron donor P700, (ii) electron transfer between iron-sulfur centers Fx and FA/FB, and (iii) reduction of photo-oxidized P700+ by reduced cytochrome C553. The relative magnitudes of phases (ii) and (iii) comprised about 20% of phase (i).

Crystallography, X-Ray↗

The detection of picoplankton 16S rDNA in cases of drowning.

Picoplankton belonging to the Synechococcus genus in cyanobacteria (approximately 1 micron in size) are found ubiquitously in Lake Biwa, Japan. However, they could not be morphologically discriminated from other bacteria by microscopy. In this study we attempted to use picoplankton for the diagnosis of drowning by PCR analysis of the 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA). We designed primers complementary to the variable regions of 16S rDNA of the picoplankton we had sequenced. A comparison was made of the PCR products from the three picoplanktons, five other cyanobacteria, Melosira (diatom), Staurdstrum (green alga), bacteria from Lake Baikal, and humans. The picogram order of template DNA from picoplankton was specifically amplified by the primers. When the template of picoplankton was mixed with human lung tissue, at least 10 ng of template DNA was needed to obtain a PCR product. The isolation of the picoplankton from human lung tissue increased the sensitivity of PCR more than a hundred-fold. The specific PCR products of the picoplankton were obtained from formalin-fixed drowning tissue. Molecular biological diagnosis of drowning was successful using picoplankton 16S rDNA.

Animals↗

Algal phycocyanins promote growth of human cells in culture.

The growth-promoting substances in a non-dialyzable extract of Synechococcus elongatus var. on RPMI 8226 cells (a human myeloma cell line) were separated by gel filtration and ion exchange chromatography. By gel filtration with Sepharose 4B, the dialyzate was separated into two fractions. One fraction was green-colored (P-1) and the other was blue-colored (P-2). The P-2 fraction had a higher growth-promoting activity than P-1. By ion exchange chromatography, the P-2 fraction was separated into two blue-colored fractions of phycocyanin and allophycocyanin. Both biliproteins promoted the growth of RPMI 8226 cells; however, allophycocyanin was more active than phycocyanin.

Cell Division↗