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Nguyen ND, Pulsford SB, Förster B, Rottet S, Rourke L, Long BM, Price GD. A carboxysome-based CO 2 concentrating mechanism for C 3 crop chloroplasts: advances and the road ahead. THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2024; 118:940-952. [PMID: 38321620 DOI: 10.1111/tpj.16667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2023] [Revised: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 02/08/2024]
Abstract
The introduction of the carboxysome-based CO2 concentrating mechanism (CCM) into crop plants has been modelled to significantly increase crop yields. This projection serves as motivation for pursuing this strategy to contribute to global food security. The successful implementation of this engineering challenge is reliant upon the transfer of a microcompartment that encapsulates cyanobacterial Rubisco, known as the carboxysome, alongside active bicarbonate transporters. To date, significant progress has been achieved with respect to understanding various aspects of the cyanobacterial CCM, and more recently, different components of the carboxysome have been successfully introduced into plant chloroplasts. In this Perspective piece, we summarise recent findings and offer new research avenues that will accelerate research in this field to ultimately and successfully introduce the carboxysome into crop plants for increased crop yields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nghiem D Nguyen
- Plant Science Division, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 134 Linnaeus Way, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, 2601, Australia
| | - Sacha B Pulsford
- Research School of Chemistry, Australian National University, 137 Sullivan's Ck Rd, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, 2601, Australia
| | - Britta Förster
- Plant Science Division, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 134 Linnaeus Way, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, 2601, Australia
| | - Sarah Rottet
- Plant Science Division, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 134 Linnaeus Way, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, 2601, Australia
| | - Loraine Rourke
- Plant Science Division, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 134 Linnaeus Way, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, 2601, Australia
| | - Benedict M Long
- Discipline of Biological Sciences, School of Environmental and Life Sciences, ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology, The University of Newcastle, University Drive, Callaghan, New South Wales, 2308, Australia
| | - G Dean Price
- Plant Science Division, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 134 Linnaeus Way, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, 2601, Australia
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Long BM, Matsuda Y, Moroney JV. Algal chloroplast pyrenoids: Evidence for convergent evolution. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2402546121. [PMID: 38513078 PMCID: PMC10998615 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2402546121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/23/2024] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Benedict Michael Long
- Discipline of Biological Sciences, School of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
| | - Yusuke Matsuda
- Department of Bioscience, School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Kansei Gakuin University, Sanda, Hyogo669-1330, Japan
| | - James V. Moroney
- Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA70803
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Clapero V, Arrivault S, Stitt M. Natural variation in metabolism of the Calvin-Benson cycle. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2024; 155:23-36. [PMID: 36959059 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2023.02.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2022] [Revised: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 03/25/2023]
Abstract
The Calvin-Benson cycle (CBC) evolved over 2 billion years ago but has been subject to massive selection due to falling atmospheric carbon dioxide, rising atmospheric oxygen and changing nutrient and water availability. In addition, large groups of organisms have evolved carbon-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) that operate upstream of the CBC. Most previous studies of CBC diversity focused on Rubisco kinetics and regulation. Quantitative metabolite profiling provides a top-down strategy to uncover inter-species diversity in CBC operation. CBC profiles were recently published for twenty species including terrestrial C3 species, terrestrial C4 species that operate a biochemical CCM, and cyanobacteria and green algae that operate different types of biophysical CCM. Distinctive profiles were found for species with different modes of photosynthesis, revealing that evolution of the various CCMs was accompanied by co-evolution of the CBC. Diversity was also found between species that share the same mode of photosynthesis, reflecting lineage-dependent diversity of the CBC. Connectivity analysis uncovers constraints due to pathway and thermodynamic topology, and reveals that cross-species diversity in the CBC is driven by changes in the balance between regulated enzymes and in the balance between the CBC and the light reactions or end-product synthesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vittoria Clapero
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, Am Mühlenberg 1, Golm, D-14476 Potsdam, Germany
| | - Stéphanie Arrivault
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, Am Mühlenberg 1, Golm, D-14476 Potsdam, Germany.
| | - Mark Stitt
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, Am Mühlenberg 1, Golm, D-14476 Potsdam, Germany
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He S, Crans VL, Jonikas MC. The pyrenoid: the eukaryotic CO2-concentrating organelle. THE PLANT CELL 2023; 35:3236-3259. [PMID: 37279536 PMCID: PMC10473226 DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koad157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2023] [Revised: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/17/2023] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
The pyrenoid is a phase-separated organelle that enhances photosynthetic carbon assimilation in most eukaryotic algae and the land plant hornwort lineage. Pyrenoids mediate approximately one-third of global CO2 fixation, and engineering a pyrenoid into C3 crops is predicted to boost CO2 uptake and increase yields. Pyrenoids enhance the activity of the CO2-fixing enzyme Rubisco by supplying it with concentrated CO2. All pyrenoids have a dense matrix of Rubisco associated with photosynthetic thylakoid membranes that are thought to supply concentrated CO2. Many pyrenoids are also surrounded by polysaccharide structures that may slow CO2 leakage. Phylogenetic analysis and pyrenoid morphological diversity support a convergent evolutionary origin for pyrenoids. Most of the molecular understanding of pyrenoids comes from the model green alga Chlamydomonas (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii). The Chlamydomonas pyrenoid exhibits multiple liquid-like behaviors, including internal mixing, division by fission, and dissolution and condensation in response to environmental cues and during the cell cycle. Pyrenoid assembly and function are induced by CO2 availability and light, and although transcriptional regulators have been identified, posttranslational regulation remains to be characterized. Here, we summarize the current knowledge of pyrenoid function, structure, components, and dynamic regulation in Chlamydomonas and extrapolate to pyrenoids in other species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shan He
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
| | - Victoria L Crans
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
| | - Martin C Jonikas
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
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GrandPre T, Zhang Y, Pyo AGT, Weiner B, Li JL, Jonikas MC, Wingreen NS. Effects of linker length on phase separation: lessons from the Rubisco-EPYC1 system of the algal pyrenoid. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.06.11.544494. [PMID: 37333342 PMCID: PMC10274861 DOI: 10.1101/2023.06.11.544494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/20/2023]
Abstract
Biomolecular condensates are membraneless organelles formed via phase separation of macromolecules, typically consisting of bond-forming "stickers" connected by flexible "linkers". Linkers have diverse roles, such as occupying space and facilitating interactions. To understand how linker length relative to other lengths affects condensation, we focus on the pyrenoid, which enhances photosynthesis in green algae. Specifically, we apply coarse-grained simulations and analytical theory to the pyrenoid proteins of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii: the rigid holoenzyme Rubisco and its flexible partner EPYC1. Remarkably, halving EPYC1 linker lengths decreases critical concentrations by ten-fold. We attribute this difference to the molecular "fit" between EPYC1 and Rubisco. Varying Rubisco sticker locations reveals that the native sites yield the poorest fit, thus optimizing phase separation. Surprisingly, shorter linkers mediate a transition to a gas of rods as Rubisco stickers approach the poles. These findings illustrate how intrinsically disordered proteins affect phase separation through the interplay of molecular length scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Trevor GrandPre
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Center for the Physics of Biological Function, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Princeton Center for Theoretical Science, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Yaojun Zhang
- Center for the Physics of Biological Function, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
- Department of Biophysics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - Andrew G. T. Pyo
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Center for the Physics of Biological Function, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Benjamin Weiner
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Center for the Physics of Biological Function, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Je-Luen Li
- D. E. Shaw Research, LLC, New York, NY 10036, USA
| | - Martin C. Jonikas
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Ned S. Wingreen
- Center for the Physics of Biological Function, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Princeton Center for Theoretical Science, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
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