Early Initiation of Bundle Sheath Cells During Leaf Development as Visualised by SCARECROW Expression in Dicotyledonous C Plants.

The C type of dicotyledonous plants exhibit a higher density of reticulate veins than the C type, with a nearly 1:1 ratio of mesophyll cells (MCs) to bundle sheath cells (BSCs). To understand how this C-type cell pattern is formed, we identified two SCARECROW (SCR) genes in C Flaveria bidentis, FbSCR1 and FbSCR2, that fully or partially complement the endodermal cell layer-defective phenotype of Arabidopsis scr mutant. We then created FbSCRs promoter β-glucuronidase reporter (GUS) lines of F.

Two cyclic electron flows around photosystem I differentially participate in C4 photosynthesis.

C4 plants assimilate CO2 more efficiently than C3 plants because of their C4 cycle that concentrates CO2. However, the C4 cycle requires additional ATP molecules, which may be supplied by cyclic electron flow (CEF) around photosystem I. One CEF route, which depends on a chloroplast NADH dehydrogenase-like (NDH) complex, is suggested to be crucial for C4 plants despite the low activity in C3 plants.

A scheme for C evolution derived from a comparative analysis of the closely related C, C-C intermediate, C-like, and C species in the genus Flaveria.

A comparative analysis of the genus Flaveria showed a C evolutionary process in which the anatomical and metabolic features of C photosynthesis were gradually acquired through C-C intermediate stages. C photosynthesis has been acquired in multiple lineages of angiosperms during evolution to suppress photorespiration. Crops that perform C photosynthesis exhibit high rates of CO assimilation and high grain production even under high-temperature in semiarid environments; therefore, engineering C photosynthesis in C plants is of great importance in the application field.

Change in expression levels of NAD kinase-encoding genes in Flaveria species.

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotides (NAD(H)) and NAD phosphates (NADP(H)) are electron carriers involved in redox reactions and metabolic processes in all organisms. NAD kinase (NADK) is the only enzyme that phosphorylates NAD into NADP, using ATP as a phosphate donor. In NADP-dependent malic enzyme (NADP-ME)-type C photosynthesis, NADP(H) are required for dehydrogenation by NADP-dependent malate dehydrogenase (NADP-MDH) in mesophyll cells, and decarboxylation by NADP-ME in bundle sheath cells.

Dynamic changes of genome sizes and gradual gain of cell-specific distribution of C enzymes during C evolution in genus Flaveria.

C plants are believed to have evolved from C plants through various C -C intermediate stages in which a photorespiration-dependent CO concentration system known as C photosynthesis operates. Genes involved in the C cycle were thought to be recruited from orthologs present in C species and developed cell-specific expression during C evolution. To understand the process of establishing C photosynthesis, we performed whole-genome sequencing and investigated expression and mesophyll- or bundle-sheath-cell-specific localization of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC), NADP-malic enzyme (NADP-ME), pyruvate, orthophosphate dikinase (PPDK) in C , C -C intermediate, C -like, and C Flaveria species.

Fine-tuned regulation of the K /H antiporter KEA3 is required to optimize photosynthesis during induction.

KEA3 is a thylakoid membrane localized K /H antiporter that regulates photosynthesis by modulating two components of proton motive force (pmf), the proton gradient (∆pH) and the electric potential (∆ψ). We identified a mutant allele of KEA3, disturbed proton gradient regulation (dpgr) based on its reduced non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) in artificial (CO -free with low O ) air. This phenotype was enhanced in the mutant backgrounds of PSI cyclic electron transport (pgr5 and crr2-1).

Promotion of Cyclic Electron Transport Around Photosystem I with the Development of C4 Photosynthesis.

C4 photosynthesis is present in approximately 7,500 species classified into 19 families, including monocots and eudicots. In the majority of documented cases, a two-celled CO2-concentrating system that uses a metabolic cycle of four-carbon compounds is employed. C4 photosynthesis repeatedly evolved from C3 photosynthesis, possibly driven by the survival advantages it bestows in the hot, often dry, and nutrient-poor soils of the tropics and subtropics.

Promotion of cyclic electron transport around photosystem I during the evolution of NADP-malic enzyme-type C4 photosynthesis in the genus Flaveria.

C4 plants display higher cyclic electron transport activity than C3 plants. This activity is suggested to be important for the production of ATPs required for C4 metabolism. To understand the process by which photosystem I (PSI) cyclic electron transport was promoted during C4 evolution, we conducted comparative analyses of the functionality of PSI cyclic electron transport among members of the genus Flaveria, which contains several C3, C3-C4 intermediate, C4-like and C4 species.

Responses of the photosynthetic electron transport system to excess light energy caused by water deficit in wild watermelon.

In plants, drought stress coupled with high levels of illumination causes not only dehydration of tissues, but also oxidative damage resulting from excess absorbed light energy. In this study, we analyzed the regulation of electron transport under drought/high-light stress conditions in wild watermelon, a xerophyte that shows strong resistance to this type of stress. Under drought/high-light conditions that completely suppressed CO(2) fixation, the linear electron flow was diminished between photosystem (PS) II and PS I, there was no photoinhibitory damage to PS II and PS I and no decrease in the abundance of the two PSs.

Elevated expression of PGR5 and NDH-H in bundle sheath chloroplasts in C4 flaveria species.

Cyclic electron transport around PSI has been proposed to supply the additional ATP required for C(4) photosynthesis. To investigate the nature of cyclic electron pathways involved in C(4) photosynthesis, we analyzed tissue-specific expression of PGR5 (PROTON GRADIENT REGULATION 5), which is involved in the antimycin A-sensitive pathway, and NDH-H, a subunit of the plastidial NAD(P)H dehydrogenase complex, in four Flaveria species comprising NADP-malic enzyme (ME)-type C(4), C(3)-C(4) intermediate and C(3) species. PGR5 was highly expressed in the C(4) species and enriched in bundle sheath chloroplasts together with NDH-H, suggesting that electron transport of both PGR5-dependent and NDH-dependent cyclic pathways is promoted to drive C(4) photosynthesis.

The long-term responses of the photosynthetic proton circuit to drought.

Proton motive force (pmf) across thylakoid membranes is not only for harnessing solar energy for photosynthetic CO(2) fixation, but also for triggering feedback regulation of photosystem II antenna. The mechanisms for balancing these two roles of the proton circuit under the long-term environmental stress, such as prolonged drought, have been poorly understood. In this study, we report on the response of wild watermelon thylakoid 'proton circuit' to drought stress using both in vivo spectroscopy and molecular analyses of the representative photosynthetic components.

Effect of PGR5 impairment on photosynthesis and growth in Arabidopsis thaliana.

PGR5 has been reported as an important factor for the activity of the ferredoxin-dependent cyclic electron transport around PSI. To elucidate the role of PGR5 in C(3) photosynthesis, we characterized the photosynthetic electron transport rate (ETR), CO(2) assimilation and growth in the Arabidopsis thaliana pgr5 mutant at various irradiances and with CO(2) regimes. In low-light-grown pgr5, the CO(2) assimilation rate and ETR were similar to the those of the wild type at low irradiance, but decreased at saturating irradiance under photorespiratory conditions as well as non-photorespiratory conditions.