Beta-carboxysomal proteins assemble into highly organized structures in Nicotiana chloroplasts

A - Papers appearing in refereed journals

Lin, M. T., Occhialini, A., Andralojc, P. J., Devonshire, J., Hines, K. M., Parry, M. A. J. and Hanson, M. R. 2014. Beta-carboxysomal proteins assemble into highly organized structures in Nicotiana chloroplasts. The Plant Journal. 79 (1), pp. 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.12536

AuthorsLin, M. T., Occhialini, A., Andralojc, P. J., Devonshire, J., Hines, K. M., Parry, M. A. J. and Hanson, M. R.
Abstract

The photosynthetic efficiency of C3 plants suffers from the reaction of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) with O-2 instead of CO2, leading to the costly process of photorespiration. Increasing the concentration of CO2 around Rubisco is a strategy used by photosynthetic prokaryotes such as cyanobacteria for more efficient incorporation of inorganic carbon. Engineering the cyanobacterial CO2-concentrating mechanism, the carboxysome, into chloroplasts is an approach to enhance photosynthesis or to compartmentalize other biochemical reactions to confer new capabilities on transgenic plants. We have chosen to explore the possibility of producing beta-carboxysomes from Synechococcus elongatus PCC7942, a model freshwater cyanobacterium. Using the agroinfiltration technique, we have transiently expressed multiple beta-carboxysomal proteins (CcmK2, CcmM, CcmL, CcmO and CcmN) in Nicotiana benthamiana with fusions that target these proteins into chloroplasts, and that provide fluorescent labels for visualizing the resultant structures. By confocal and electron microscopic analysis, we have observed that the shell proteins of the b-carboxysome are able to assemble in plant chloroplasts into highly organized assemblies resembling empty microcompartments. We demonstrate that a foreign protein can be targeted with a 17-amino-acid CcmN peptide to the shell proteins inside chloroplasts. Our experiments establish the feasibility of introducing carboxysomes into chloroplasts for the potential compartmentalization of Rubisco or other proteins.

KeywordsPlant Sciences
Year of Publication2014
JournalThe Plant Journal
Journal citation79 (1), pp. 1-12
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.12536
PubMed ID24810513
Open accessPublished as ‘gold’ (paid) open access
FunderNational Science Foundation - US
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health (USA)
Funder project or codeWheat
[20:20 Wheat] Maximising yield potential of wheat
Project: 5138
Publisher's version
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online08 May 2014
Publication process dates
Accepted15 Apr 2014
PublisherWiley
Wiley-Blackwell
Copyright licensePublisher copyright
CC BY
Grant IDEF-1105584
BB/I024488/1
F32GM103019
ISSN0960-7412

Permalink - https://repository.rothamsted.ac.uk/item/8qyzy/beta-carboxysomal-proteins-assemble-into-highly-organized-structures-in-nicotiana-chloroplasts

84 total views
90 total downloads
0 views this month
2 downloads this month
Download files as zip