Phytochrome C and Low Temperature Promote the Protein Accumulation and Red Light Signaling of Phytochrome D.

Light affects almost every aspect of plant development. It is perceived by photoreceptors, among which phytochromes (PHY) are responsible for monitoring the red and far-red spectrum. Arabidopsis thaliana possesses five phytochrome genes (phyA-E). Whereas functions of phyA and phyB are extensively studied, our knowledge on other phytochromes is still rudimentary. To analyze phyD function we expressed it at high levels in different phytochrome-deficient genetic backgrounds. Overexpressed phyD-YFP can govern effective light signaling but only at low temperature and in cooperation with functional phyC. Under these conditions, phyD-YFP accumulates to high levels and opposite to phyB, this pool is stable in light. By comparing the photoconvertible phyD-YFP and phyB levels and their signaling in continuous and pulsed irradiation, we showed that phyD-YFP is a less efficient photoreceptor than phyB. This conclusion is supported by the facts that only a part of the phyD-YFP pool is photoconvertible and thermal reversion of phyD-YFP is faster than that of phyB. Our data suggest that the temperature-dependent function of phyD is based on the amount of phyD protein and not on its Pfr stability, as described for phyB. We also found that phyD-YFP and phyB-GFP associate with strongly overlapping genomic locations and mediate similar changes in gene expression, however the efficiency of phyD-YFP is lower. Based on these data we propose that under certain conditions, synergistic interaction of phyD and phyC can substitute phyB function in seedlings and in adult plants, thus increases the ability of plants to respond more flexibly to environmental changes.

Dominant suppressor genes of p53-induced apoptosis in Drosophila melanogaster.

One of a major function of programmed cell death (apoptosis) is the removal of cells which suffered oncogenic mutations, thereby preventing cancerous transformation. By making use of a Double-Headed-EP (DEP) transposon, a P element derivative made in our laboratory, we made an insertional mutagenesis screen in Drosophila melanogaster to identify genes which, when overexpressed, suppress the p53-activated apoptosis. The DEP element has Gal4-activatable, outward-directed UAS-promoters at both ends which can be deleted separately in vivo. In the DEP insertion mutants, we used the GMR-Gal4 driver to induce transcription from both UAS-promoters and tested the suppression effect on the apoptotic rough eye phenotype generated by an activated UAS-p53 transgene. By DEP insertions, seven genes were identified which suppressed the p53-induced apoptosis. In four mutants, the suppression effect resulted from single genes activated by one UAS-promoter (Pka-R2, Rga, crol, Spt5). In the other three (Orct2, Polr2M, stg), deleting either UAS-promoter eliminated the suppression effect. In qPCR experiments we found that the genes in the vicinity of the DEP insertion also showed an elevated expression level. This suggested an additive effect of the nearby genes on suppressing apoptosis. In the eucaryotic genomes there are co-expressed gene clusters. Three of the DEP insertion mutants are included and two are in close vicinity of separate co-expressed gene clusters. This raises the possibility that the activity of some of the genes in these clusters may help the suppression of the apoptotic cell death.

Manifestation of Triploid Heterosis in the Root System after Crossing Diploid and Autotetraploid Energy Willow Plants.

Successful use of woody species in reducing climatic and environmental risks of energy shortage and spreading pollution requires deeper understanding of the physiological functions controlling biomass productivity and phytoremediation efficiency. Targets in the breeding of energy willow include the size and the functionality of the root system. For the combination of polyploidy and heterosis, we have generated triploid hybrids (THs) of energy willow by crossing autotetraploid willow plants with leading cultivars (Tordis and Inger). These novel Salix genotypes (TH3/12, TH17/17, TH21/2) have provided a unique experimental material for characterization of Mid-Parent Heterosis (MPH) in various root traits. Using a root phenotyping platform, we detected heterosis (TH3/12: MPH 43.99%; TH21/2: MPH 26.93%) in the size of the root system in soil. Triploid heterosis was also recorded in the fresh root weights, but it was less pronounced (MPH%: 9.63-19.31). In agreement with root growth characteristics in soil, the TH3/12 hybrids showed considerable heterosis (MPH: 70.08%) under in vitro conditions. Confocal microscopy-based imaging and quantitative analysis of root parenchyma cells at the division-elongation transition zone showed increased average cell diameter as a sign of cellular heterosis in plants from TH17/17 and TH21/2 triploid lines. Analysis of the hormonal background revealed that the auxin level was seven times higher than the total cytokinin contents in root tips of parental Tordis plants. In triploid hybrids, the auxin-cytokinin ratios were considerably reduced in TH3/12 and TH17/17 roots. In particular, the contents of cytokinin precursor, such as isopentenyl adenosine monophosphate, were elevated in all three triploid hybrids. Heterosis was also recorded in the amounts of active gibberellin precursor, GA19, in roots of TH3/12 plants. The presented experimental findings highlight the physiological basics of triploid heterosis in energy willow roots.

Impact of protein-chromophore interaction on the retinal excited state and photocycle of Gloeobacter rhodopsin: role of conserved tryptophan residues.

The function of microbial as well as mammalian retinal proteins (aka rhodopsins) is associated with a photocycle initiated by light excitation of the retinal chromophore of the protein, covalently bound through a protonated Schiff base linkage. Although electrostatics controls chemical reactions of many organic molecules, attempt to understand its role in controlling excited state reactivity of rhodopsins and, thereby, their photocycle is scarce. Here, we investigate the effect of highly conserved tryptophan residues, between which the all-trans retinal chromophore of the protein is sandwiched in microbial rhodopsins, on the charge distribution along the retinal excited state, quantum yield and nature of the light-induced photocycle and absorption properties of Gloeobacter rhodopsin (GR). Replacement of these tryptophan residues by non-aromatic leucine (W222L and W122L) or phenylalanine (W222F) does not significantly affect the absorption maximum of the protein, while all the mutants showed higher sensitivity to photobleaching, compared to wild-type GR. Flash photolysis studies revealed lower quantum yield of trans-cis photoisomerization in W222L as well as W222F mutants relative to wild-type. The photocycle kinetics are also controlled by these tryptophan residues, resulting in altered accumulation and lifetime of the intermediates in the W222L and W222F mutants. We propose that protein-retinal interactions facilitated by conserved tryptophan residues are crucial for achieving high quantum yield of the light-induced retinal isomerization, and affect the thermal retinal re-isomerization to the resting state.

The balance between photosynthesis and respiration explains the niche differentiation between Crocosphaera and Cyanothece.

Crocosphaera and Cyanothece are both unicellular, nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria that prefer different environments. Whereas Crocosphaera mainly lives in nutrient-deplete, open oceans, Cyanothece is more common in coastal, nutrient-rich regions. Despite their physiological similarities, the factors separating their niches remain elusive. Here we performed physiological experiments on clone cultures and expand upon a simple ecological model to show that their different niches can be sufficiently explained by the observed differences in their photosynthetic capacities and rates of carbon (C) consumption. Our experiments revealed that Cyanothece has overall higher photosynthesis and respiration rates than Crocosphaera. A simple growth model of these microorganisms suggests that C storage and consumption are previously under-appreciated factors when evaluating the occupation of niches by different marine nitrogen fixers.

New Insights into Tolytoxin Effect in Human Cancer Cells: Apoptosis Induction and the Relevance of Hydroxyl Substitution of Its Macrolide Cycle on Compound Potency.

Scytophycins, including tolytoxin, represent a class of actin disrupting macrolides with strong antiproliferative effects on human cells. Despite intense research, little attention has been paid to scytophycin-induced cell death or the structural features affecting its potency. We show that tolytoxin and its natural analogue, 7-O-methylscytophycin B, lacking the hydroxyl substitution in its macrolactone ring, differ substantially in their cytotoxic effect. Both compounds increase the level of caspases 3/7, which are the main executioner proteases during apoptosis, in HeLa wild-type (WT) cells. However, no caspase activity was detected in HeLa cells lacking Bax/Bak proteins crucial for caspase activation via the mitochondrial pathway. Obtained data strongly suggests that scytophycins are capable of inducing mitochondria-dependent apoptosis. These findings encourage further research in structure-activity relationships in scytophycins and highlight the potential of these compounds in targeted drug delivery.

The AtCRK5 Protein Kinase Is Required to Maintain the ROS NO Balance Affecting the PIN2-Mediated Root Gravitropic Response in Arabidopsis.

The Arabidopsis AtCRK5 protein kinase is involved in the establishment of the proper auxin gradient in many developmental processes. Among others, the Atcrk5-1 mutant was reported to exhibit a delayed gravitropic response via compromised PIN2-mediated auxin transport at the root tip. Here, we report that this phenotype correlates with lower superoxide anion (O2•-) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) levels but a higher nitric oxide (NO) content in the mutant root tips in comparison to the wild type (AtCol-0). The oxidative stress inducer paraquat (PQ) triggering formation of O2•- (and consequently, H2O2) was able to rescue the gravitropic response of Atcrk5-1 roots. The direct application of H2O2 had the same effect. Under gravistimulation, correct auxin distribution was restored (at least partially) by PQ or H2O2 treatment in the mutant root tips. In agreement, the redistribution of the PIN2 auxin efflux carrier was similar in the gravistimulated PQ-treated mutant and untreated wild type roots. It was also found that PQ-treatment decreased the endogenous NO level at the root tip to normal levels. Furthermore, the mutant phenotype could be reverted by direct manipulation of the endogenous NO level using an NO scavenger (cPTIO). The potential involvement of AtCRK5 protein kinase in the control of auxin-ROS-NO-PIN2-auxin regulatory loop is discussed.

Differential Polarization Imaging of Plant Cells. Mapping the Anisotropy of Cell Walls and Chloroplasts.

Modern light microscopy imaging techniques have substantially advanced our knowledge about the ultrastructure of plant cells and their organelles. Laser-scanning microscopy and digital light microscopy imaging techniques, in general-in addition to their high sensitivity, fast data acquisition, and great versatility of 2D-4D image analyses-also opened the technical possibilities to combine microscopy imaging with spectroscopic measurements. In this review, we focus our attention on differential polarization (DP) imaging techniques and on their applications on plant cell walls and chloroplasts, and show how these techniques provided unique and quantitative information on the anisotropic molecular organization of plant cell constituents: (i) We briefly describe how laser-scanning microscopes (LSMs) and the enhanced-resolution Re-scan Confocal Microscope (RCM of Confocal.nl Ltd. Amsterdam, Netherlands) can be equipped with DP attachments-making them capable of measuring different polarization spectroscopy parameters, parallel with the 'conventional' intensity imaging. (ii) We show examples of different faces of the strong anisotropic molecular organization of chloroplast thylakoid membranes. (iii) We illustrate the use of DP imaging of cell walls from a variety of wood samples and demonstrate the use of quantitative analysis. (iv) Finally, we outline the perspectives of further technical developments of micro-spectropolarimetry imaging and its use in plant cell studies.

Photomorphogenesis in the Picocyanobacterium Cyanobium gracile Includes Increased Phycobilisome Abundance Under Blue Light, Phycobilisome Decoupling Under Near Far-Red Light, and Wavelength-Specific Photoprotective Strategies.

Photomorphogenesis is a process by which photosynthetic organisms perceive external light parameters, including light quality (color), and adjust cellular metabolism, growth rates and other parameters, in order to survive in a changing light environment. In this study we comprehensively explored the light color acclimation of Cyanobium gracile, a common cyanobacterium in turbid freshwater shallow lakes, using nine different monochromatic growth lights covering the whole visible spectrum from 435 to 687 nm. According to incident light wavelength, C. gracile cells performed great plasticity in terms of pigment composition, antenna size, and photosystem stoichiometry, to optimize their photosynthetic performance and to redox poise their intersystem electron transport chain. In spite of such compensatory strategies, C. gracile, like other cyanobacteria, uses blue and near far-red light less efficiently than orange or red light, which involves moderate growth rates, reduced cell volumes and lower electron transport rates. Unfavorable light conditions, where neither chlorophyll nor phycobilisomes absorb light sufficiently, are compensated by an enhanced antenna size. Increasing the wavelength of the growth light is accompanied by increasing photosystem II to photosystem I ratios, which involve better light utilization in the red spectral region. This is surprisingly accompanied by a partial excitonic antenna decoupling, which was the highest in the cells grown under 687 nm light. So far, a similar phenomenon is known to be induced only by strong light; here we demonstrate that under certain physiological conditions such decoupling is also possible to be induced by weak light. This suggests that suboptimal photosynthetic performance of the near far-red light grown C. gracile cells is due to a solid redox- and/or signal-imbalance, which leads to the activation of this short-term light acclimation process. Using a variety of photo-biophysical methods, we also demonstrate that under blue wavelengths, excessive light is quenched through orange carotenoid protein mediated non-photochemical quenching, whereas under orange/red wavelengths state transitions are involved in photoprotection.

Thylakoid membrane reorganizations revealed by small-angle neutron scattering of Monstera deliciosa leaves associated with non-photochemical quenching.

Non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) is an important photoprotective mechanism in plants and algae. Although the process is extensively studied, little is known about its relationship with ultrastructural changes of the thylakoid membranes. In order to better understand this relationship, we studied the effects of illumination on the organization of thylakoid membranes in Monstera deliciosa leaves. This evergreen species is known to exhibit very large NPQ and to possess giant grana with dozens of stacked thylakoids. It is thus ideally suited for small-angle neutron scattering measurements (SANS)-a non-invasive technique, which is capable of providing spatially and statistically averaged information on the periodicity of the thylakoid membranes and their rapid reorganizations in vivo. We show that NPQ-inducing illumination causes a strong decrease in the periodic order of granum thylakoid membranes. Development of NPQ and light-induced ultrastructural changes, as well as the relaxation processes, follow similar kinetic patterns. Surprisingly, whereas NPQ is suppressed by diuron, it impedes only the relaxation of the structural changes and not its formation, suggesting that structural changes do not cause but enable NPQ. We also demonstrate that the diminishment of SANS peak does not originate from light-induced redistribution and reorientation of chloroplasts inside the cells.

Fast Diffusion of the Unassembled PetC1-GFP Protein in the Cyanobacterial Thylakoid Membrane.

Biological membranes were originally described as a fluid mosaic with uniform distribution of proteins and lipids. Later, heterogeneous membrane areas were found in many membrane systems including cyanobacterial thylakoids. In fact, cyanobacterial pigment-protein complexes (photosystems, phycobilisomes) form a heterogeneous mosaic of thylakoid membrane microdomains (MDs) restricting protein mobility. The trafficking of membrane proteins is one of the key factors for long-term survival under stress conditions, for instance during exposure to photoinhibitory light conditions. However, the mobility of unbound 'free' proteins in thylakoid membrane is poorly characterized. In this work, we assessed the maximal diffusional ability of a small, unbound thylakoid membrane protein by semi-single molecule FCS (fluorescence correlation spectroscopy) method in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC6803. We utilized a GFP-tagged variant of the cytochrome b6f subunit PetC1 (PetC1-GFP), which was not assembled in the b6f complex due to the presence of the tag. Subsequent FCS measurements have identified a very fast diffusion of the PetC1-GFP protein in the thylakoid membrane (D = 0.14 - 2.95 µm2s-1). This means that the mobility of PetC1-GFP was comparable with that of free lipids and was 50-500 times higher in comparison to the mobility of proteins (e.g., IsiA, LHCII-light-harvesting complexes of PSII) naturally associated with larger thylakoid membrane complexes like photosystems. Our results thus demonstrate the ability of free thylakoid-membrane proteins to move very fast, revealing the crucial role of protein-protein interactions in the mobility restrictions for large thylakoid protein complexes.

Circular Spectropolarimetric Sensing of Vegetation in the Field: Possibilities for the Remote Detection of Extraterrestrial Life.

Homochirality is a generic and unique property of all biochemical life, and the fractional circular polarization of light it induces therefore constitutes a potentially unambiguous biosignature. However, while high-quality circular polarimetric spectra can be easily and quickly obtained in the laboratory, accurate measurements in the field are much more challenging due to large changes in illumination and target movement. In this study, we measured various targets in the field, up to distances of a few kilometers, using the dedicated circular spectropolarimeter TreePol. We show how photosynthetic life can readily be distinguished from abiotic matter. We underline the potential of circular polarization signals as a remotely accessible means to characterize and monitor terrestrial vegetation, for example, for agriculture and forestry. In addition, we discuss the potential of circular polarization for the remote detection of extraterrestrial life.

Fluorescence-detected linear dichroism imaging in a re-scan confocal microscope equipped with differential polarization attachment.

Confocal laser scanning microscopy is probably the most widely used and one of the most powerful techniques in basic biology, medicine and material sciences that is employed to elucidate the architecture of complex cellular structures and molecular macro-assemblies. It has recently been shown that the information content, signal-to-noise ratio and resolution of such microscopes (LSMs) can be improved significantly by adding different attachments or modifying their design, while retaining their user-friendly features and relatively moderate costs. Differential polarization (DP) attachments, using high-frequency modulation/demodulation circuits, have made LSMs capable of high-precision 2D and 3D mapping of the anisotropy of microscopic samples-without interfering with their 'conventional' fluorescence or transmission imaging (Steinbach et al. in Methods Appl Fluoresc 2:015005, 2014). The resolution and the quality of fluorescence imaging have been enhanced in the recently constructed Re-scan confocal microscopy (RCM) (De Luca et al. in Biomed Opt Express 4:2644-2656, 2013). In this work, we developed the RCM technique further, by adding a DP-attachment modulating the exciting laser beam via a liquid crystal (LC) retarder synchronized with the data acquisition system; by this means, and with the aid of a software, fluorescence-detected linear dichroism (FDLD), characteristic of the anisotropic molecular organization of the sample, could be recorded in parallel with the confocal fluorescence imaging. For demonstration, we show FDLD images of a plant cell wall (Ginkgo biloba) stained with Etzold's staining solution.

Protein arrangement factor: a new photosynthetic parameter characterizing the organization of thylakoid membrane proteins.

A proper spatial distribution of photosynthetic pigment-protein complexes - PPCs (photosystems, light-harvesting antennas) is crucial for photosynthesis. In plants, photosystems I and II (PSI and PSII) are heterogeneously distributed between granal and stromal thylakoids. Here we have described similar heterogeneity in the PSI, PSII and phycobilisomes (PBSs) distribution in cyanobacteria thylakoids into microdomains by applying a new image processing method suitable for the Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 strain with yellow fluorescent protein-tagged PSI. The new image processing method is able to analyze the fluorescence ratios of PPCs on a single-cell level, pixel per pixel. Each cell pixel is plotted in CIE1931 color space by forming a pixel-color distribution of the cell. The most common position in CIE1931 is then defined as protein arrangement (PA) factor with xy coordinates. The PA-factor represents the most abundant fluorescence ratio of PSI/PSII/PBS, the 'mode color' of studied cell. We proved that a shift of the PA-factor from the center of the cell-pixel distribution (the 'median' cell color) is an indicator of the presence of special subcellular microdomain(s) with a unique PSI/PSII/PBS fluorescence ratio in comparison to other parts of the cell. Furthermore, during a 6-h high-light (HL) treatment, 'median' and 'mode' color (PA-factor) of the cell changed similarly on the population level, indicating that such microdomains with unique PSI/PSII/PBS fluorescence were not formed during HL (i.e. fluorescence changed equally in the whole cell). However, the PA-factor was very sensitive in characterizing the fluorescence ratios of PSI/PSII/PBS in cyanobacterial cells during HL by depicting a 4-phase acclimation to HL, and their physiological interpretation has been discussed.

On the origin of the slow M-T chlorophyll a fluorescence decline in cyanobacteria: interplay of short-term light-responses.

The slow kinetic phases of the chlorophyll a fluorescence transient (induction) are valuable tools in studying dynamic regulation of light harvesting, light energy distribution between photosystems, and heat dissipation in photosynthetic organisms. However, the origin of these phases are not yet fully understood. This is especially true in the case of prokaryotic oxygenic photoautotrophs, the cyanobacteria. To understand the origin of the slowest (tens of minutes) kinetic phase, the M-T fluorescence decline, in the context of light acclimation of these globally important microorganisms, we have compared spectrally resolved fluorescence induction data from the wild type Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 cells, using orange (λ = 593 nm) actinic light, with those of mutants, ΔapcD and ΔOCP, that are unable to perform either state transition or fluorescence quenching by orange carotenoid protein (OCP), respectively. Our results suggest a multiple origin of the M-T decline and reveal a complex interplay of various known regulatory processes in maintaining the redox homeostasis of a cyanobacterial cell. In addition, they lead us to suggest that a new type of regulatory process, operating on the timescale of minutes to hours, is involved in dissipating excess light energy in cyanobacteria.

Automated Microscopy: Macro Language Controlling a Confocal Microscope and its External Illumination: Adaptation for Photosynthetic Organisms.

Photosynthesis research employs several biophysical methods, including the detection of fluorescence. Even though fluorescence is a key method to detect photosynthetic efficiency, it has not been applied/adapted to single-cell confocal microscopy measurements to examine photosynthetic microorganisms. Experiments with photosynthetic cells may require automation to perform a large number of measurements with different parameters, especially concerning light conditions. However, commercial microscopes support custom protocols (through Time Controller offered by Olympus or Experiment Designer offered by Zeiss) that are often unable to provide special set-ups and connection to external devices (e.g., for irradiation). Our new system combining an Arduino microcontroller with the Cell⊕Finder software was developed for controlling Olympus FV1000 and FV1200 confocal microscopes and the attached hardware modules. Our software/hardware solution offers (1) a text file-based macro language to control the imaging functions of the microscope; (2) programmable control of several external hardware devices (light sources, thermal controllers, actuators) during imaging via the Arduino microcontroller; (3) the Cell⊕Finder software with ergonomic user environment, a fast selection method for the biologically important cells and precise positioning feature that reduces unwanted bleaching of the cells by the scanning laser. Cell⊕Finder can be downloaded from http://www.alga.cz/cellfinder. The system was applied to study changes in fluorescence intensity in Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 cells under long-term illumination. Thus, we were able to describe the kinetics of phycobilisome decoupling. Microscopy data showed that phycobilisome decoupling appears slowly after long-term (>1 h) exposure to high light.

Fluorescence-Detected Linear Dichroism of Wood Cell Walls in Juvenile Serbian Spruce: Estimation of Compression Wood Severity.

Fluorescence-detected linear dichroism (FDLD) microscopy provides observation of structural order in a microscopic sample and its expression in numerical terms, enabling both quantitative and qualitative comparison among different samples. We applied FDLD microscopy to compare the distribution and alignment of cellulose fibrils in cell walls of compression wood (CW) and normal wood (NW) on stem cross-sections of juvenile Picea omorika trees. Our data indicate a decrease in cellulose fibril order in CW compared with NW. Radial and tangential walls differ considerably in both NW and CW. In radial walls, cellulose fibril order shows a gradual decrease from NW to severe CW, in line with the increase in CW severity. This indicates that FDLD analysis of cellulose fibril order in radial cell walls is a valuable method for estimation of CW severity.

Cryo-imaging of photosystems and phycobilisomes in Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 cells.

Primary photosynthetic reactions take place inside thylakoid membrane where light-to-chemical energy conversion is catalyzed by two pigment-protein complexes, photosystem I (PSI) and photosystem II (PSII). Light absorption in cyanobacteria is increased by pigment-protein supercomplexes--phycobilisomes (PBSs) situated on thylakoid membrane surfaces that transfer excitation energy into both photosystems. We have explored the localization of PSI, PSII and PBSs in thylakoid membrane of native cyanobacteria cell Anabaena sp. 7120 by means of cryogenic confocal microscopy. We have adapted a conventional temperature controlling stage to an Olympus FV1000 confocal microscope. The presence of red shifted emission of chlorophylls from PSI has been confirmed by spectral measurements. Confocal fluorescence images of PSI (in a spectral range 710-750 nm), PSII (in a spectral range 690-705 nm) and PBSs (in a spectral range 650-680 nm) were recorded at low temperature. Co-localization of images showed spatial heterogeneity of PSI, PSII and PBSs over the thylakoid membrane, and three dominant areas were identified: PSI-PSII-PBS supercomplex area, PSII-PBS supercomplex area and PSI area. The observed results were discussed with regard to light-harvesting regulation in cyanobacteria.

Atomic force microscopy stiffness tomography on living Arabidopsis thaliana cells reveals the mechanical properties of surface and deep cell-wall layers during growth.

Cell-wall mechanical properties play a key role in the growth and the protection of plants. However, little is known about genuine wall mechanical properties and their growth-related dynamics at subcellular resolution and in living cells. Here, we used atomic force microscopy (AFM) stiffness tomography to explore stiffness distribution in the cell wall of suspension-cultured Arabidopsis thaliana as a model of primary, growing cell wall. For the first time that we know of, this new imaging technique was performed on living single cells of a higher plant, permitting monitoring of the stiffness distribution in cell-wall layers as a function of the depth and its evolution during the different growth phases. The mechanical measurements were correlated with changes in the composition of the cell wall, which were revealed by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. In the beginning and end of cell growth, the average stiffness of the cell wall was low and the wall was mechanically homogenous, whereas in the exponential growth phase, the average wall stiffness increased, with increasing heterogeneity. In this phase, the difference between the superficial and deep wall stiffness was highest. FTIR spectra revealed a relative increase in the polysaccharide/lignin content.

Anisotropic organization and microscopic manipulation of self-assembling synthetic porphyrin microrods that mimic chlorosomes: bacterial light-harvesting systems.

Being able to control in time and space the positioning, orientation, movement, and sense of rotation of nano- to microscale objects is currently an active research area in nanoscience, having diverse nanotechnological applications. In this paper, we demonstrate unprecedented control and maneuvering of rod-shaped or tubular nanostructures with high aspect ratios which are formed by self-assembling synthetic porphyrins. The self-assembly algorithm, encoded by appended chemical-recognition groups on the periphery of these porphyrins, is the same as the one operating for chlorosomal bacteriochlorophylls (BChl's). Chlorosomes, rod-shaped organelles with relatively long-range molecular order, are the most efficient naturally occurring light-harvesting systems. They are used by green photosynthetic bacteria to trap visible and infrared light of minute intensities even at great depths, e.g., 100 m below water surface or in volcanic vents in the absence of solar radiation. In contrast to most other natural light-harvesting systems, the chlorosomal antennae are devoid of a protein scaffold to orient the BChl's; thus, they are an attractive goal for mimicry by synthetic chemists, who are able to engineer more robust chromophores to self-assemble. Functional devices with environmentally friendly chromophores-which should be able to act as photosensitizers within hybrid solar cells, leading to high photon-to-current conversion efficiencies even under low illumination conditions-have yet to be fabricated. The orderly manner in which the BChl's and their synthetic counterparts self-assemble imparts strong diamagnetic and optical anisotropies and flow/shear characteristics to their nanostructured assemblies, allowing them to be manipulated by electrical, magnetic, or tribomechanical forces.