Effect of Heat Stress and the Recovery Potential of Heterocystous Cyanobacterium, Anabaena iyengarii Bharadwaja 1935

Cyanobacteria, the major photosynthetic organisms, cover a large surface area of this planet. These organisms, being photosynthetic, have the capacity for sequestration of atmospheric carbon dioxide, a significant greenhouse gas that causes global warming. In this work, we have collected, developed pure culture, and identified 25 cyanobacterial species from semi arid agricultural rice fields of western Odisha with the high-temperature environmental setting. The purpose was to screen the cyanobacteria that can survive and grow at high temperatures with high photosynthetic efficiency. Cyanobacteria belong to genera Nostoc, Anabaena, Calothrix, and Hapalosiphon are observed to survive at 45°C. Among the cyanobacterial species, Anabaena iyengarii 17-SKD-2014 was found to exhibit higher growth, protein content, photosynthetic pigments, and photosynthetic O2 evolution at 45°C in comparison to other cyanobacterial isolates. Further, this cyanobacterium was grown at 50°C to analyze the cellular viability, and only up to ninth day incubated culture could recover from high-temperature stress after transferring to 25°C. Even though this indigenous cyanobacterial species failed to survive at 50°C in the laboratory conditions beyond a time limit, but this could be biotechnologically manipulated for effective carbon dioxide sequestration contributing to minimization of global warming.

Examination of pre-industrial and future [CO2] reveals the temperature-dependent CO2 sensitivity of light energy partitioning at PSII in eucalypts

We grew faster-growing Eucalyptus saligna Sm. and slower-growing Eucalyptus sideroxylon A. Cunn ex Woolls tree seedlings in sunlit glasshouses at all combinations of 290 µL L–1 (pre-industrial), 400 µL L–1 (modern) or 650 µL L–1 (future) global atmospheric CO2 ([CO2]), and ambient or ambient + 4°C temperature. To assess photosynthetic performance, we simultaneously measured light-saturated CO2 assimilation (Asat) and chlorophyll fluorescence emission along with the capacity for photosynthetic O2 evolution and leaf pigment composition. Photosynthetic response to [CO2] was similar between species. Increasing [CO2] but not temperature increased Asat. The response of photosynthetic electron transport to [CO2] was temperature-dependent and manifested through adjustments in energy partitioning at PSII. Increasing [CO2] resulted in greater PSII operating efficiencies at the elevated temperature. We observed no associated acclimatory adjustments in the capacity for photosynthetic O2 evolution or changes in leaf chlorophyll content. Photoprotective energy dissipation responded to increasing [CO2] and temperature. Across species and treatments, increased energy partitioning to electron transport was always associated with decreased partitioning to energy dissipation. Our results suggest that in response to increasing [CO2] and temperature, E. saligna and E. sideroxylon meet increased demands for the products of electron transport via adjustments in energy partitioning, not through acclimation of the capacity for photosynthetic electron transport or light absorption.

Low temperature effects on grapevine photosynthesis: the role of inorganic phosphate

The photosynthetic response of grapevine leaves (Vitis vinifera L. cv. Riesling) to low temperature was studied to determine the role of end-product limitation and orthophosphate (Pi) recycling to the chloroplast under these conditions. As reported previously, the response of photosynthesis in air to stomatal conductance declined at temperatures below 15°C, suggesting that at low temperatures inhibition of photosynthesis in grapevine has a strong non-stomatal component. Stimulation of carbon assimilation at ambient CO2 by reducing O2 from 21 to 2 kPa, O2 declined to zero below 15°C, a phenomenon often associated with a restriction in photosynthesis due to end-product-synthesis limitation. This stimulation could be restored by feeding Pi. Photosynthesis in leaf disks at both high and low irradiances in non-photorespiratory conditions (1% CO2) was highly sensitive to reductions in temperature. Below 15°C, feeding Pi caused a large stimulation of photosynthetic O2 evolution. Metabolite measurements indicated that despite a decline in Rubisco carbamylation state, ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate (RuBP) levels dropped at low temperature and the ratio of 3-phosphoglycerate (3-PGA) to triose phosphate (TP) remained largely unchanged. These results suggest that grapevine-leaf photosynthesis is severely restricted at low temperature by non-stomatal mechanisms. The return of Pi to the chloroplast plays an important role in this limitation but a coordinated set of regulatory processes maintain a homeostasis of phosphorylated sugar levels.

Salt Enhances Photosystem I Content and Cyclic Electron Flow via NAD(P)H Dehydrogenase in the Halotolerant Cyanobacterium Aphanothece halophytica

To uncover the adaptation mechanisms of photosystems for halotolerance, changes in stoichiometry and activity of photosystems in response to changes of salinities were examined in a halotolerant cyanobacterium, Aphanothece halophytica. Photosynthetic O2 evolution was high even at high salinities. O2 evolution activity increased with increasing external concentration of NaCl, reached a maximum at 1.5 M NaCl, and then decreased. Similar salt dependence was observed for photosystem II activity. On the other hand, photosystem I activity increased concomitantly with increase in salinity. Photoacoustic measurements indicated that appreciable energy storage by photosystem I mediated cyclic electron flow at high salinities. Significant electron donation to photosystem I reaction centres through NAD(P)H-dehydrogenase complexes was observed in high salt media. The contents of cytochrome b6/f and photosystem II were almost constant under various salinity conditions, whereas the levels of chlorophyll α, photosystem I, soluble cytochrome c-553, and NAD(P)H-dehydrogenase increased in the cells grown with high salinities. These results indicate that salt specifically induces an increase of protein levels involving cyclic electron flow around photosystem I that may entail an important role for adaptation of Aphanothece halophytica cells to high salinities.