Cluster-Level Relationships of Genes Involved in Carbon Metabolism in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803: Development of a Novel Succinate-Producing Strain.

We quantified the transcript levels of 44 genes related to sugar catabolism in strains with altered primary carbon metabolism and discovered a consistent expression pattern among succinate-producing mutants. To identify factors that determine the expression pattern, we calculated Pearson's correlation coefficients, using the transcript data. Correlation analysis revealed positive and negative correlations among genes encoding sugar catabolic enzymes. On the basis of this analysis, we found that the mutant overexpressing both rre37 (encoding an OmpR-type response regulator) and sigE (encoding an RNA polymerase sigma factor) produced increased levels of succinate under dark, anaerobic conditions, with a maximum productivity of 420 mg l-1.

Corrigendum: Purification and Characterisation of Malate Dehydrogenase From Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803: Biochemical Barrier of the Oxidative Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2018.00947.].

Efficient extraction and preservation of thermotolerant phycocyanins from red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae.

C-Phycocyanin (PC) is a protein used commercially as a natural blue pigment produced by cyanobacteria, cryptophytes, and rhodophytes. Although it is industrially synthesized from the cyanobacterium Arthrospira platensis, PC requires high levels of energy for its extraction, which involves freezing of cells. However, as a protein, PC is easily denatured at extreme temperatures. In this study, we extracted PC from the red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae, denoted as CmPC, and found that this protein was tolerant to high temperatures and acidic pH. CmPC was extracted by suspending cells in water mixed with various salts and organic acids without freeze-drying or freeze-thaw. The stability of CmPC varied with salt concentration and was destabilized by organic acids. Our results indicate that C. merolae is a potential candidate for PC production with thermotolerant properties.

Biochemical characterisation of fumarase C from a unicellular cyanobacterium demonstrating its substrate affinity, altered by an amino acid substitution.

The tricarboxylic acid cycle produces NADH for oxidative phosphorylation and fumarase [EC 4.2.1.2] is a critical enzyme in this cycle, catalysing the reversible conversion of fumarate and L-malate. Fumarase is applied to industrial L-malate production as a biocatalyst. L-malate is used in a wide range of industries such as food and beverage, pharmacy chemistry. Although the biochemical properties of fumarases have been studied in many organisms, they have not been investigated in cyanobacteria. In this study, the optimum pH and temperature of Synechocystis 6803 fumarase C (SyFumC) were 7.5 and 30 °C, respectively. The Km of SyFumC for L-malate was higher than for fumarate. Furthermore, SyFumC activity was strongly inhibited by citrate and succinate, consistent with fumarases in other organisms. Substitution of alanine by glutamate at position 314 of SyFumC changed the kcat for fumarate and L-malate. In addition, the inhibitory effects of citrate and succinate on SyFumC activity were alleviated. Phylogenetic analysis revealed cyanobacterial fumarase clades divided in non-nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria and nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria. SyFumC was thus biochemically characterised, including identification of an amino acid residue important for substrate affinity and enzymatic activity.

Macrophage scavenger receptor-a-deficient mice are resistant against diabetic nephropathy through amelioration of microinflammation.

Microinflammation is a common major mechanism in the pathogenesis of diabetic vascular complications, including diabetic nephropathy. Macrophage scavenger receptor-A (SR-A) is a multifunctional receptor expressed on macrophages. This study aimed to determine the role of SR-A in diabetic nephropathy using SR-A-deficient (SR-A(-/-)) mice. Diabetes was induced in SR-A(-/-) and wild-type (SR-A(+/+)) mice by streptozotocin injection. Diabetic SR-A(+/+) mice presented characteristic features of diabetic nephropathy: albuminuria, glomerular hypertrophy, mesangial matrix expansion, and overexpression of transforming growth factor-beta at 6 months after induction of diabetes. These changes were markedly diminished in diabetic SR-A(-/-) mice, without differences in blood glucose and blood pressure levels. Interestingly, macrophage infiltration in the kidneys was dramatically decreased in diabetic SR-A(-/-) mice compared with diabetic SR-A(+/+) mice. DNA microarray revealed that proinflammatory genes were overexpressed in renal cortex of diabetic SR-A(+/+) mice and suppressed in diabetic SR-A(-/-) mice. Moreover, anti-SR-A antibody blocked the attachment of monocytes to type IV collagen substratum but not to endothelial cells. Our results suggest that SR-A promotes macrophage migration into diabetic kidneys by accelerating the attachment to renal extracellular matrices. SR-A may be a key molecule for the inflammatory process in pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy and a novel therapeutic target for diabetic vascular complications.

Purification and Characterisation of Malate Dehydrogenase From Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803: Biochemical Barrier of the Oxidative Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle.

Cyanobacteria possess an atypical tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle with various bypasses. Previous studies have suggested that a cyclic flow through the TCA cycle is not essential for cyanobacteria under normal growth conditions. The cyanobacterial TCA cycle is, thus, different from that in other bacteria, and the biochemical properties of enzymes in this TCA cycle are less understood. In this study, we reveal the biochemical characteristics of malate dehydrogenase (MDH) from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 MDH (SyMDH). The optimal temperature of SyMDH activity was 45-50°C and SyMDH was more thermostable than MDHs from other mesophilic microorganisms. The optimal pH of SyMDH varied with the direction of the reaction: pH 8.0 for the oxidative reaction and pH 6.5 for the reductive reaction. The reductive reaction catalysed by SyMDH was activated by magnesium ions and fumarate, indicating that SyMDH is regulated by a positive feedback mechanism. The Km-value of SyMDH for malate was approximately 210-fold higher than that for oxaloacetate and the Km-value for NAD+ was approximately 19-fold higher than that for NADH. The catalytic efficiency of SyMDH for the reductive reaction, deduced from kcat-values, was also higher than that for the oxidative reaction. These results indicate that SyMDH is more efficient in the reductive reaction in the TCA cycle, and it plays key roles in determining the direction of the TCA cycle in this cyanobacterium.

Allosteric Inhibition of Phosphoenolpyruvate Carboxylases is Determined by a Single Amino Acid Residue in Cyanobacteria.

Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC) is an important enzyme for CO2 fixation and primary metabolism in photosynthetic organisms including cyanobacteria. The kinetics and allosteric regulation of PEPCs have been studied in many organisms, but the biochemical properties of PEPC in the unicellular, non-nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 have not been clarified. In this study, biochemical analysis revealed that the optimum pH and temperature of Synechocystis 6803 PEPC proteins were 7.3 and 30 °C, respectively. Synechocystis 6803 PEPC was found to be tolerant to allosteric inhibition by several metabolic effectors such as malate, aspartate, and fumarate compared with other cyanobacterial PEPCs. Comparative sequence and biochemical analysis showed that substitution of the glutamate residue at position 954 with lysine altered the enzyme so that it was inhibited by malate, aspartate, and fumarate. PEPC of the nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 was purified, and its activity was inhibited in the presence of malate. Substitution of the lysine at position 946 (equivalent to position 954 in Synechocystis 6803) with glutamate made Anabaena 7120 PEPC tolerant to malate. These results demonstrate that the allosteric regulation of PEPC in cyanobacteria is determined by a single amino acid residue, a characteristic that is conserved in different orders.

Substrate Specificity and Allosteric Regulation of a D-Lactate Dehydrogenase from a Unicellular Cyanobacterium are Altered by an Amino Acid Substitution.

Lactate/lactic acid is an important chemical compound for the manufacturing of bioplastics. The unicellular cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 can produce lactate from carbon dioxide and possesses D-lactate dehydrogenase (Ddh). Here, we performed a biochemical analysis of the Ddh from this cyanobacterium (SyDdh) using recombinant proteins. SyDdh was classified into a cyanobacterial clade similar to those from Gram-negative bacteria, although it was distinct from them. SyDdh can use both pyruvate and oxaloacetate as a substrate and is activated by fructose-1,6-bisphosphate and repressed by divalent cations. An amino acid substitution based on multiple sequence alignment data revealed that the glutamine at position 14 and serine at position 234 are important for the allosteric regulation by Mg2+ and substrate specificity of SyDdh, respectively. These results reveal the characteristic biochemical properties of Ddh in a unicellular cyanobacterium, which are different from those of other bacterial Ddhs.

Modification of photosynthetic electron transport and amino acid levels by overexpression of a circadian-related histidine kinase hik8 in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803.

Cyanobacteria perform oxygenic photosynthesis, and the maintenance of photosynthetic electron transport chains is indispensable to their survival in various environmental conditions. Photosynthetic electron transport in cyanobacteria can be studied through genetic analysis because of the natural competence of cyanobacteria. We here show that a strain overexpressing hik8, a histidine kinase gene related to the circadian clock, exhibits an altered photosynthetic electron transport chain in the unicellular cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. Respiratory activity was down-regulated under nitrogen-replete conditions. Photosynthetic activity was slightly lower in the hik8-overexpressing strain than in the wild-type after nitrogen depletion, and the values of photosynthetic parameters were altered by hik8 overexpression under nitrogen-replete and nitrogen-depleted conditions. Transcripts of genes encoding Photosystem I and II were increased by hik8 overexpression under nitrogen-replete conditions. Nitrogen starvation triggers increase in amino acids but the magnitude of the increase in several amino acids was diminished by hik8 overexpression. These genetic data indicate that Hik8 regulates the photosynthetic electron transport, which in turn alters primary metabolism during nitrogen starvation in this cyanobacterium.