Plant mitochondrial dynamics and the role of membrane lipids

Contribution of Massive Mitochondrial Fusion and Subsequent Fission in the Plant Life Cycle to the Integrity of the Mitochondrion and Its Genome

Plant mitochondria have large genomes to house a small number of key genes. Most mitochondria do not contain a whole genome. Despite these latter characteristics, the mitochondrial genome is faithfully maternally inherited. To maintain the mitochondrial genes-so important for energy production-the fusion and fission of mitochondria are critical. Fission in plants is better understood than fusion, with the dynamin-related proteins (DRP 3A and 3B) driving the constriction of the mitochondrion. How the endoplasmic reticulum and the cytoskeleton are linked to the fission process is not yet fully understood. The fusion mechanism is less well understood, as obvious orthologues are not present. However, there is a recently described gene, MIRO2, that appears to have a significant role, as does the ER and cytoskeleton. Massive mitochondrial fusion (MMF or hyperfusion) plays a significant role in plants. MMF occurs at critical times of the life cycle, prior to flowering, in the enlarging zygote and at germination, mixing the cells' mitochondrial population-the so-called "discontinuous whole". MMF in particular aids genome repair, the conservation of critical genes and possibly gives an energy boost to important stages of the life cycle. MMF is also important in plant regeneration, an important component of plant biotechnology.

Determinants, and implications, of the shape and size of thylakoids and cristae

Thylakoids are flattened sacs isolated from other membranes; cristae are attached to the rest of the inner mitochondrial membrane by the crista junction, but the crista lumen is separated from the intermembrane space. The shape of thylakoids and cristae involves membranes with small (5-30 nm) radii of curvature. While the mechanism of curvature is not entirely clear, it seems to be largely a function of Curt proteins in thylakoids and Mitochondrial Organising Site and Crista Organising Centre proteins and oligomeric F_OF₁ ATP synthase in cristae. A subordinate, or minimal, role is attributable to lipids with areas of their head group area greater (convex leaflet) or smaller (concave leaflet) than the area of the lipid tail; examples of the latter group are monogalactosyldiglyceride in thylakoids and cardiolipin in cristae. The volume per unit area on the lumen side of the membrane is less than that of the chloroplast stroma or cyanobacterial cytosol for thylakoids, and mitochondrial matrix for cristae. A low volume per unit area of thylakoids and cristae means a small lumen width that is the average of wider spaces between lipid parts of the membranes and the narrower gaps dominated by extra-membrane components of transmembrane proteins. These structural constraints have important implications for the movement of the electron carriers plastocyanin and cytochrome c₆ (thylakoids) and cytochrome c (cristae) and hence the separation of the membrane-associated electron donors to, and electron acceptors from, these water-soluble electron carriers. The donor/acceptor pairs, are the cytochrome fb₆Fe_nh complex and P₇₀₀⁺ in thylakoids, and Complex III and Complex IV of cristae. The other energy flux parallel to the membranes is that of the proton motive force generated by redox-powered H⁺ pumps into the lumen to the proton motive force use in ATP synthesis by H⁺ flux from the lumen through the ATP synthase. For both the electron transport and proton motive force movement, concentration differences of reduced and oxidised electron carriers and protonated and deprotonated pH buffers are involved. The need for diffusion along a congested route of these energy transfer agents may limit the separation of sources and sinks parallel to the membranes of thylakoids and cristae.

Phototropin- and photosynthesis-dependent mitochondrial positioning in Arabidopsis thaliana mesophyll cells

Mitochondria are frequently observed in the vicinity of chloroplasts in photosynthesizing cells, and this association is considered necessary for their metabolic interactions. We previously reported that, in leaf palisade cells of Arabidopsis thaliana, mitochondria exhibit blue-light-dependent redistribution together with chloroplasts, which conduct accumulation and avoidance responses under the control of blue-light receptor phototropins. In this study, precise motility analyses by fluorescent microscopy revealed that the individual mitochondria in palisade cells, labeled with green fluorescent protein, exhibit typical stop-and-go movement. When exposed to blue light, the velocity of moving mitochondria increased in 30 min, whereas after 4 h, the frequency of stoppage of mitochondrial movement markedly increased. Using different mutant plants, we concluded that the presence of both phototropin1 and phototropin2 is necessary for the early acceleration of mitochondrial movement. On the contrary, the late enhancement of stoppage of mitochondrial movement occurs only in the presence of phototropin2 and only when intact photosynthesis takes place. A plasma-membrane ghost assay suggested that the stopped mitochondria are firmly adhered to chloroplasts. These results indicate that the physical interaction between mitochondria and chloroplasts is cooperatively mediated by phototropin2- and photosynthesis-dependent signals. The present study might add novel regulatory mechanism for light-dependent plant organelle interactions.

Assembly of the Complexes of the Oxidative Phosphorylation System in Land Plant Mitochondria

Plant mitochondria play a major role during respiration by producing the ATP required for metabolism and growth. ATP is produced during oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), a metabolic pathway coupling electron transfer with ADP phosphorylation via the formation and release of a proton gradient across the inner mitochondrial membrane. The OXPHOS system is composed of large, multiprotein complexes coordinating metal-containing cofactors for the transfer of electrons. In this review, we summarize the current state of knowledge about assembly of the OXPHOS complexes in land plants. We present the different steps involved in the formation of functional complexes and the regulatory mechanisms controlling the assembly pathways. Because several assembly steps have been found to be ancestral in plants-compared with those described in fungal and animal models-we discuss the evolutionary dynamics that lead to the conservation of ancestral pathways in land plant mitochondria.

The E3 ubiquitin ligase SP1-like 1 plays a positive role in peroxisome biogenesis in Arabidopsis

Peroxisomes are dynamic organelles crucial for a variety of metabolic processes during the development of eukaryotic organisms, and are functionally linked to other subcellular organelles, such as mitochondria and chloroplasts. Peroxisomal matrix proteins are imported by peroxins (PEX proteins), yet the modulation of peroxin functions is poorly understood. We previously reported that, besides its known function in chloroplast protein import, the Arabidopsis E3 ubiquitin ligase SP1 (suppressor of ppi1 locus1) also targets to peroxisomes and mitochondria, and promotes the destabilization of the peroxisomal receptor-cargo docking complex components PEX13 and PEX14. Here we present evidence that in Arabidopsis, SP1's closest homolog SP1-like 1 (SPL1) plays an opposite role to SP1 in peroxisomes. In contrast to sp1, loss-of-function of SPL1 led to reduced peroxisomal β-oxidation activity, and enhanced the physiological and growth defects of pex14 and pex13 mutants. Transient co-expression of SPL1 and SP1 promoted each other's destabilization. SPL1 reduced the ability of SP1 to induce PEX13 turnover, and it is the N-terminus of SP1 and SPL1 that determines whether the protein is able to promote PEX13 turnover. Finally, SPL1 showed prevalent targeting to mitochondria, but rather weak and partial localization to peroxisomes. Our data suggest that these two members of the same E3 protein family utilize distinct mechanisms to modulate peroxisome biogenesis, where SPL1 reduces the function of SP1. Plants and possibly other higher eukaryotes may employ this small family of E3 enzymes to differentially modulate the dynamics of several organelles essential to energy metabolism via the ubiquitin-proteasome system.

Proteome of Plant Peroxisomes

Plant peroxisomes are required for a number of fundamental physiological processes, such as primary and secondary metabolism, development and stress response. Indexing the dynamic peroxisome proteome is prerequisite to fully understanding the importance of these organelles. Mass Spectrometry (MS)-based proteome analysis has allowed the identification of novel peroxisomal proteins and pathways in a relatively high-throughput fashion and significantly expanded the list of proteins and biochemical reactions in plant peroxisomes. In this chapter, we summarize the experimental proteomic studies performed in plants, compile a list of ~200 confirmed Arabidopsis peroxisomal proteins, and discuss the diverse plant peroxisome functions with an emphasis on the role of Arabidopsis MS-based proteomics in discovering new peroxisome functions. Many plant peroxisome proteins and biochemical pathways are specific to plants, substantiating the complexity, plasticity and uniqueness of plant peroxisomes. Mapping the full plant peroxisome proteome will provide a knowledge base for the improvement of crop production, quality and stress tolerance.

Sequence and biochemical analysis of Arabidopsis SP1 protein, a regulator of organelle biogenesis

Peroxisomes, chloroplasts, and mitochondria are essential eukaryotic organelles that host a suite of metabolic processes crucial to energy metabolism and development. Regulatory mechanisms of the dynamics and biogenesis of these important organelles have begun to be discovered in plants. We recently showed that, aside from its previously reported role in targeting chloroplast protein import proteins, the Arabidopsis ubiquitin E3 ligase SP1 (suppressor of ppi1 locus1) negatively regulates peroxisome matrix protein import by promoting the ubiquitination and destabilization of PEX13 and possibly PEX14 and other components of the peroxisome protein import apparatus. Here, we compared protein sequence and domain structure of SP1-like proteins in Arabidopsis and their human homolog, Mitochondrial-Anchored Protein Ligase (MAPL). We further characterized SP1 protein in respect to its membrane topology and ubiquitin E3 ligase activity.