Suppression of the lethality of high light to a quadruple HLI mutant by the inactivation of the regulatory protein PfsR in Synechocystis PCC 6803.
A regulatory gene, designated pfsR (photosynthesis, Fe homeostasis and stress-response regulator), was discovered by a genetic screen in Synechocystis PCC 6803. Deletion of the gene from a high light-sensitive strain lacking four hli genes (4Xhli) restored viability to the parental strain under high light conditions. The quintuple mutant pfsR-/4Xhli retained photosystem-II and oxygen evolution capacity at levels similar to the wild-type levels under high light conditions. The transcripts of the two bfr genes (encoding bacterioferritin) were found to be constitutively up-regulated, whereas the transcripts of ho1 gene (encoding a heme oxygenase) were greatly down-regulated in high light upon deletion of pfsR. Under intermediate high intensity light, the pfsR deletion strains accumulated carotenoids and chlorophyll a to a significantly higher level than their corresponding parental strains. An exacerbated, transient increase in oxygen evolution during the early hours of high light acclimation and a somewhat increased steady-state level of photosystem-II-mediated oxygen evolution observed in the 4Xhli strain were brought back to the wild-type levels upon deletion of pfsR from the strain. The pfsR deletion mutants were found to be less sensitive to iron limitation under low light conditions and to suffer less lipid peroxidation following exposure to high light. Therefore, inactivation of PfsR resulted in tighter control of iron availability, which in turn reduced oxidative stress during photosynthesis in high light. These studies have revealed a critical role of PfsR in regulation of iron homeostasis and stress response.
Jantaro
Saowarath
S
Department of Applied Science, University of Arkansas, Little Rock, Arkansas 72204, USA.
Ali
Quaisar
Q
Lone
Samea
S
He
Qingfang
Q
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D017353:Gene Deletion; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; D008027:Light; D045342:Light-Harvesting Protein Complexes / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D010100:Oxygen / Q000378:metabolism; D010788:Photosynthesis; D045322:Photosynthetic Reaction Center Complex Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D045332:Photosystem II Protein Complex; D046939:Synechocystis / Q000378:metabolism*
D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D045342:Light-Harvesting Protein Complexes; D045322:Photosynthetic Reaction Center Complex Proteins; D045332:Photosystem II Protein Complex; C091582:high light-inducible protein, cyanobacteria; D010100:Oxygen