Chloroplast transformation in Chlamydomonas with high velocity microprojectiles

Molecular factors affecting the accumulation of recombinant proteins in the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii chloroplast

In an effort to develop microalgae as a robust system for the production of valuable proteins, we analyzed some of the factors affecting recombinant protein expression in the chloroplast of the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. We monitored mRNA accumulation, protein synthesis, and protein turnover for three codon-optimized transgenes including GFP, bacterial luciferase, and a large single chain antibody. GFP and luciferase proteins were quite stable, while the antibody was less so. Measurements of protein synthesis, in contrast, clearly showed that translation of the three chimeric mRNAs was greatly reduced when compared to endogenous mRNAs under control of the same atpA promoter/UTR. Only in a few conditions this could be explained by limited mRNA availability since, in most cases, recombinant mRNAs accumulated quite well when compared to the atpA mRNA. In vitro toeprint and in vivo polysome analyses suggest that reduced ribosome association might contribute to limited translational efficiency. However, when recombinant polysome levels and protein synthesis are analyzed as a whole, it becomes clear that other steps, such as inefficient protein elongation, are likely to have a considerable impact. Taken together, our results point to translation as the main step limiting the expression of heterologous proteins in the C. reinhardtii chloroplast.

The chloroplast transformation toolbox: selectable markers and marker removal

Plastid transformation is widely used in basic research and for biotechnological applications. Initially developed in Chlamydomonas and tobacco, it is now feasible in a broad range of species. Selection of transgenic lines where all copies of the polyploid plastid genome are transformed requires efficient markers. A number of traits have been used for selection such as photoautotrophy, resistance to antibiotics and tolerance to herbicides or to other metabolic inhibitors. Restoration of photosynthesis is an effective primary selection method in Chlamydomonas but can only serve as a screening tool in flowering plants. The most successful and widely used markers are derived from bacterial genes that inactivate antibiotics, such as aadA that confers resistance to spectinomycin and streptomycin. For many applications, the presence of a selectable marker that confers antibiotic resistance is not desirable. Efficient marker removal methods are a major attraction of the plastid engineering tool kit. They exploit the homologous recombination and segregation pathways acting on chloroplast genomes and are based on direct repeats, transient co-integration or co-transformation and segregation of trait and marker genes. Foreign site-specific recombinases and their target sites provide an alternative and effective method for removing marker genes from plastids.

Messenger RNA degradation is initiated at the 5' end and follows sequence- and condition-dependent modes in chloroplasts

Using reporter gene constructs, consisting of the bacterial uidA (GUS) coding region flanked by the 5′ and 3′ regions of the Chlamydomonas rbcL and psaB genes, respectively, we studied the degradation of mRNAs in the chloroplast of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii in vivo. Extending the 5′ terminus of transcripts of the reporter gene by more than 6 nucleotides triggered rapid degradation. Placing a poly(G) tract, known to pause exoribonucleases, in various positions downstream of the 5′ terminus blocked rapid degradation of the transcripts. In all these cases the 5′ ends of the accumulating GUS transcripts were found to be trimmed to the 5′ end of the poly(G) tracts indicating that a 5′→3′ exoribonuclease is involved in the degradation process. Several unstable variants of the GUS transcript could not be rescued from rapid degradation by a poly(G) tract showing that sequence/structure-dependent modes of mRNA breakdown exist in the Chlamydomonas chloroplast. Furthermore, degradation of poly(G)-stabilized transcripts that accumulated in cells maintained in the dark could be augmented by illuminating the cells, implying a photo-activated mode of mRNA degradation that is not blocked by a poly(G) tract. These results suggest sequence- and condition-dependent 5′→3′ mRNA-degrading pathways in the chloroplast of C. reinhardtii.

Stable chloroplast transformation of immature scutella and inflorescences in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Chloroplast transformation in wheat was achieved by bombardment of scutella from immature embryos and immature inflorescences, respectively. A wheat chloroplast site-specific expression vector, pBAGNRK, was constructed by placing an expression cassette containing neomycin phosphotransferase II (nptII) and green fluorescent protein (gfp) as selection and reporter genes, respectively, in the intergenic spacer between atpB and rbcL of wheat chloroplast genome. Integration of gfp gene in the plastome was identified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis and Southern blotting using gfp gene as a probe. Expression of GFP protein was examined by western blot. Three positive transformants were obtained and the Southern blot of partial fragment of atpB and rbcL (targeting site) probes verified that one of them was homoplasmic. Stable expression of GFP fluorescence was confirmed by confocal microscopy in the leaf tissues from T(1) progeny seedlings. PCR analysis of gfp gene also confirmed the inheritance of transgene in the T(1) progeny. These results strengthen the feasibility of wheat chloroplast transformation and also give a novel method for the introduction of important agronomic traits in wheat through chloroplast transformation.

Improved biohydrogen production with an expression of codon-optimized hemH and lba genes in the chloroplast of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

According to the codon bias in the chloroplast genome of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, the codon-optimized coding regions of both the ferrochelatase gene, hemH, from Bradyrhizobium japonicum and the leghemoglobin gene, lba, from Glycine max were synthesized de novo and transferred into the chloroplast of C. reinhardtii. The expression level of hemH-lba protein was improved by 6.8 folds in the codon-optimized transgenic alga compared with the non-optimized one under both normal and anaerobic conditions. H(2) yield was 22% and the respiration rate was 44% higher in the codon-optimized transgenic algal cultures than those of the non-optimized ones, and was 450% and 134% higher than those of the control cultures, respectively. The transcript levels of hydA1 and hydA2 in the hemH-lba transgenic alga were also more stable and higher than those of the control alga. These results demonstrate that codon optimization increased the expression level of hemH-lba protein in the chloroplast of C. reinhardtii and improved algal H(2) yield by enhancing the respiration rate resulting in low O(2) content in the medium and up regulation of the expression of hydA1 and hydA2 in cells, thereby confirming the potential of the utilization of leghemoglobins for H(2) production in green algae.

A simple method for chloroplast transformation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Photosystem I (PSI) is a multisubunit pigment-protein complex that uses light energy to transfer electrons from plastocyanin to ferredoxin. Application of genetic engineering to photosynthetic reaction center proteins has led to a significant advancement in our understanding of primary electron transfer events and the role of the protein environment in modulating these processes. Chlamydomonas reinhardtii provides a system particularly amenable to analyze the structure-function relationship of Photosystem I. C. reinhardtii is also a particularly favorable organism for chloroplast transformation because it contains only a single chloroplast and grows heterotrophically when supplemented with acetate. Chlamydomonas has, therefore, served as a model organism for the development of chloroplast transformation procedures and the study of photosynthetic mutants generated using this method. Exogenous cloned cpDNA can be introduced into the chloroplast by using this biolistic gene gun method. DNA-coated tungsten or gold particles are bombarded onto cells. Upon its entry into chloroplasts, the transforming DNA is released from the particles and integrated into the chloroplast genome through homologous recombination. The most versatile chloroplast selectable marker is aminoglycoside adenyl transferase (aadA), which can be expressed in the chloroplast to confer resistance to spectinomycin or streptomycin. This article describes the procedures for chloroplast transformation.

The nucleus-encoded trans-acting factor MCA1 plays a critical role in the regulation of cytochrome f synthesis in Chlamydomonas chloroplasts

Organelle gene expression is characterized by nucleus-encoded trans-acting factors that control posttranscriptional steps in a gene-specific manner. As a typical example, in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, expression of the chloroplast petA gene encoding cytochrome f, a major subunit of the cytochrome b(6)f complex, depends on MCA1 and TCA1, required for the accumulation and translation of the petA mRNA. Here, we show that these two proteins associate in high molecular mass complexes that also contain the petA mRNA. We demonstrate that MCA1 is degraded upon interaction with unassembled cytochrome f that transiently accumulates during the biogenesis of the cytochrome b(6)f complex. Strikingly, this interaction relies on the very same residues that form the repressor motif involved in the Control by Epistasy of cytochrome f Synthesis (CES), a negative feedback mechanism that downregulates cytochrome f synthesis when its assembly within the cytochrome b(6)f complex is compromised. Based on these new findings, we present a revised picture for the CES regulation of petA mRNA translation that involves proteolysis of the translation enhancer MCA1, triggered by its interaction with unassembled cytochrome f.

Recent advances in plant transformation

Plant genetic engineering has become one of the most important molecular tools in the modern molecular breeding of crops. Over the last decade, significant progress has been made in the development of new and efficient transformation methods in plants. Despite a variety of available DNA delivery methods, Agrobacterium- and biolistic-mediated transformation remain the two predominantly employed approaches. In particular, progress in Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of cereals and other recalcitrant dicot species has been quite remarkable. In the meantime, other transgenic-enabling technologies have emerged, including generation of marker-free transgenics, gene targeting, and chromosomal engineering. Although transformation of some plant species or elite germplasm remains a challenge, further advancement in transformation technology is expected because the mechanisms of governing the regeneration and transformation processes are now better understood and are being creatively applied to designing improved transformation methods or to developing new enabling technologies.

Engineering the plastid genome of Nicotiana sylvestris, a diploid model species for plastid genetics

The plastids of higher plants have their own ∼120-160-kb genome that is present in 1,000-10,000 copies per cell. Engineering of the plastid genome (ptDNA) is based on homologous recombination between the plastid genome and cloned ptDNA sequences in the vector. A uniform population of engineered ptDNA is obtained by selection for marker genes encoded in the vectors. Manipulations of ptDNA include (1) insertion of transgenes in intergenic regions; (2) posttransformation excision of marker genes to obtain marker-free plants; (3) gene knockouts and gene knockdowns, and (4) cotransformation with multiple plasmids to introduce nonselected genes without physical linkage to marker genes. Most experiments on plastome engineering have been carried out in the allotetraploid Nicotiana tabacum. We report here for the first time plastid transformation in Nicotiana sylvestris, a diploid ornamental species. We demonstrate that the protocols and vectors developed for plastid transformation in N. tabacum are directly applicable to N. sylvestris with the advantage that the N. sylvestris transplastomic lines are suitable for mutant screens.

Solar-driven hydrogen production in green algae

The twin problems of energy security and global warming make hydrogen an attractive alternative to traditional fossil fuels with its combustion resulting only in the release of water vapor. Biological hydrogen production represents a renewable source of the gas and can be performed by a diverse range of microorganisms from strict anaerobic bacteria to eukaryotic green algae. Compared to conventional methods for generating H(2), biological systems can operate at ambient temperatures and pressures without the need for rare metals and could potentially be coupled to a variety of biotechnological processes ranging from desalination and waste water treatment to pharmaceutical production. Photobiological hydrogen production by microalgae is particularly attractive as the main inputs for the process (water and solar energy) are plentiful. This chapter focuses on recent developments in solar-driven H(2) production in green algae with emphasis on the model organism Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. We review the current methods used to achieve sustained H(2) evolution and discuss possible approaches to improve H(2) yields, including the optimization of culturing conditions, reducing light-harvesting antennae and targeting auxiliary electron transport and fermentative pathways that compete with the hydrogenase for reductant. Finally, industrial scale-up is discussed in the context of photobioreactor design and the future prospects of the field are considered within the broader context of a biorefinery concept.

Plant plastid engineering

Genetic material in plants is distributed into nucleus, plastids and mitochondria. Plastid has a central role of carrying out photosynthesis in plant cells. Plastid transformation is becoming more popular and an alternative to nuclear gene transformation because of various advantages like high protein levels, the feasibility of expressing multiple proteins from polycistronic mRNAs, and gene containment through the lack of pollen transmission. Recently, much progress in plastid engineering has been made. In addition to model plant tobacco, many transplastomic crop plants have been generated which possess higher resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses and molecular pharming. In this mini review, we will discuss the features of the plastid DNA and advantages of plastid transformation. We will also present some examples of transplastomic plants developed so far through plastid engineering, and the various applications of plastid transformation.

Biofuels from algae: challenges and potential

Algae biofuels may provide a viable alternative to fossil fuels; however, this technology must overcome a number of hurdles before it can compete in the fuel market and be broadly deployed. These challenges include strain identification and improvement, both in terms of oil productivity and crop protection, nutrient and resource allocation and use, and the production of co-products to improve the economics of the entire system. Although there is much excitement about the potential of algae biofuels, much work is still required in the field. In this article, we attempt to elucidate the major challenges to economic algal biofuels at scale, and improve the focus of the scientific community to address these challenges and move algal biofuels from promise to reality.

Chloroplasts as expression platforms for plant-produced vaccines

Production of recombinant subunit vaccines from genes incorporated in the plastid genome is advantageous because of the attainable expression level due to high transgene copy number and the absence of gene silencing; biocontainment as a consequence of maternal inheritance of plastids and no transgene presence in the pollen; and expression of multiple transgenes in prokaryotic-like operons. We discuss the core technology of plastid transformation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a unicellular alga, and Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco), a flowering plant species, and demonstrate the utility of the technology for the production of recombinant vaccine antigens.

Production of therapeutic proteins in algae, analysis of expression of seven human proteins in the chloroplast of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Recombinant proteins are widely used today in many industries, including the biopharmaceutical industry, and can be expressed in bacteria, yeasts, mammalian and insect cell cultures, or in transgenic plants and animals. In addition, transgenic algae have also been shown to support recombinant protein expression, both from the nuclear and chloroplast genomes. However, to date, there are only a few reports on recombinant proteins expressed in the algal chloroplast. It is unclear whether this is because of few attempts or of limitations of the system that preclude expression of many proteins. Thus, we sought to assess the versatility of transgenic algae as a recombinant protein production platform. To do this, we tested whether the algal chloroplast could support the expression of a diverse set of current or potential human therapeutic proteins. Of the seven proteins chosen, >50% expressed at levels sufficient for commercial production. Three expressed at 2%-3% of total soluble protein, while a forth protein accumulated to similar levels when translationally fused to a well-expressed serum amyloid protein. All of the algal chloroplast-expressed proteins are soluble and showed biological activity comparable to that of the same proteins expressed using traditional production platforms. Thus, the success rate, expression levels, and bioactivity achieved demonstrate the utility of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii as a robust platform for human therapeutic protein production.

Plant-derived vaccines and other therapeutics produced in contained systems

The use of contained plant systems for the production of biopharmaceuticals represents a powerful alternative to current methods, combining the benefits of whole-plant systems and cell cultures. In vitro contained production systems include plant cell suspensions, hairy root cultures, novel plants grown in contained conditions and microalgae. These systems show intrinsic advantages, such as control over growth conditions, production in compliance with good manufacturing practice and avoidance of political resistance to the release of genetically modified field crops. At present, one of the two plant-produced vaccine-related products that have gone all the way through production and regulatory hurdles derives from tobacco cell suspensions, and the second is a human therapeutic enzyme, which is expected to reach commercial development soon and derives from carrot suspension cells. In the future, several other products from contained systems are expected to reach the clinical trial stage.

The chloroplast genome exists in multimeric forms

Chloroplast DNA conformation was analyzed by pulse-field gel electrophoresis. We found that spinach leaf chloroplast DNA molecules exist in at least four distinct forms with the apparent molecular weights of monomer, dimer, trimer, and tetramer. Two-dimensional gel analysis of DNA after UV nicking and in the presence of ethidium bromide indicates that they are not isomers that differ in superhelical density. DNA gyrase decatenation analysis demonstrates that the majority of the DNA molecules are oligomers rather than catenanes. The relative amounts of monomer, dimer, trimer, and tetramer forms, quantitated by molecular hybridization, are 1, 1/3, 1/9, and 1/27, respectively, and do not change during leaf maturation. The possible mechanisms of chloroplast DNA oligomer formation are discussed.

The Dunaliella salina organelle genomes: large sequences, inflated with intronic and intergenic DNA

BACKGROUND

Dunaliella salina Teodoresco, a unicellular, halophilic green alga belonging to the Chlorophyceae, is among the most industrially important microalgae. This is because D. salina can produce massive amounts of beta-carotene, which can be collected for commercial purposes, and because of its potential as a feedstock for biofuels production. Although the biochemistry and physiology of D. salina have been studied in great detail, virtually nothing is known about the genomes it carries, especially those within its mitochondrion and plastid. This study presents the complete mitochondrial and plastid genome sequences of D. salina and compares them with those of the model green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Volvox carteri.

RESULTS

The D. salina organelle genomes are large, circular-mapping molecules with approximately 60% noncoding DNA, placing them among the most inflated organelle DNAs sampled from the Chlorophyta. In fact, the D. salina plastid genome, at 269 kb, is the largest complete plastid DNA (ptDNA) sequence currently deposited in GenBank, and both the mitochondrial and plastid genomes have unprecedentedly high intron densities for organelle DNA: approximately 1.5 and approximately 0.4 introns per gene, respectively. Moreover, what appear to be the relics of genes, introns, and intronic open reading frames are found scattered throughout the intergenic ptDNA regions -- a trait without parallel in other characterized organelle genomes and one that gives insight into the mechanisms and modes of expansion of the D. salina ptDNA.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings confirm the notion that chlamydomonadalean algae have some of the most extreme organelle genomes of all eukaryotes. They also suggest that the events giving rise to the expanded ptDNA architecture of D. salina and other Chlamydomonadales may have occurred early in the evolution of this lineage. Although interesting from a genome evolution standpoint, the D. salina organelle DNA sequences will aid in the development of a viable plastid transformation system for this model alga, and they will complement the forthcoming D. salina nuclear genome sequence, placing D. salina in a group of a select few photosynthetic eukaryotes for which complete genome sequences from all three genetic compartments are available.

Recombination and the maintenance of plant organelle genome stability

Like their nuclear counterpart, the plastid and mitochondrial genomes of plants have to be faithfully replicated and repaired to ensure the normal functioning of the plant. Inability to maintain organelle genome stability results in plastid and/or mitochondrial defects, which can lead to potentially detrimental phenotypes. Fortunately, plant organelles have developed multiple strategies to maintain the integrity of their genetic material. Of particular importance among these processes is the extensive use of DNA recombination. In fact, recombination has been implicated in both the replication and the repair of organelle genomes. Revealingly, deregulation of recombination in organelles results in genomic instability, often accompanied by adverse consequences for plant fitness. The recent identification of four families of proteins that prevent aberrant recombination of organelle DNA sheds much needed mechanistic light on this important process. What comes out of these investigations is a partial portrait of the recombination surveillance machinery in which plants have co-opted some proteins of prokaryotic origin but have also evolved whole new factors to keep their organelle genomes intact. These new features presumably optimized the protection of plastid and mitochondrial genomes against the particular genotoxic stresses they face.

Effects of site-directed mutations in the chloroplast-encoded Ycf4 gene on PSI complex assembly in the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

The chloroplast-encoded Ycf4 plays an essential role in PSI complex assembly in the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. To gain insight into how Ycf4 functions, we generated several mutants in which residues R120, E179 and/or E181, which are conserved among oxygenic photosynthetic organisms, were changed to A or Q. Although the single mutants R120A and R120Q accumulated 80% less Ycf4 than the wild type, they assembled a functional PSI complex and grew photosynthetically like the wild type. Thus we inferred that under laboratory growth conditions, wild-type cells accumulate a superfluous amount of Ycf4. Single mutants E179A, E179Q and E181Q assembled a functional PSI complex like the wild type, whereas the single mutant E181A and double mutant E179/181A accumulated a functional PSI complex to significantly reduced levels. Double mutant E179/181Q, in contrast, accumulated Ycf4 at the wild-type level but did not assemble any mature PSI complex, suggesting that the two glutamic acid residues play crucial roles in the functionality of Ycf4. Interestingly, sucrose density gradient centrifugation of the thylakoid extracts separated a small amount of PSI subcomplex. The apparent size of the subcomplex (150-170 kDa), its composition and pulse-chase protein labeling indicate that it was an unstable subcomplex consisting of a PsaA-PsaB heterodimer. We inferred that the subcomplex was a PSI complex assembly intermediate that was detected because subsequent assembly steps were blocked by the E179/181Q mutation. We concluded that Ycf4 is involved in early processes of PSI complex assembly.

Advances in chloroplast engineering

The chloroplast is a pivotal organelle in plant cells and eukaryotic algae to carry out photosynthesis, which provides the primary source of the world's food. The expression of foreign genes in chloroplasts offers several advantages over their expression in the nucleus: high-level expression, transgene stacking in operons and a lack of epigenetic interference allowing stable transgene expression. In addition, transgenic chloroplasts are generally not transmitted through pollen grains because of the cytoplasmic localization. In the past two decades, great progress in chloroplast engineering has been made. In this paper, we review and highlight recent studies of chloroplast engineering, including chloroplast transformation procedures, controlled expression of plastid transgenes in plants, the expression of foreign genes for improvement of plant traits, the production of biopharmaceuticals, metabolic pathway engineering in plants, plastid transformation to study RNA editing, and marker gene excision system.

Mutational analysis of eggplant latent viroid RNA processing in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii chloroplast

Viroids of the family Avsunviroidae, such as eggplant latent viroid (ELVd), contain hammerhead ribozymes and replicate in the chloroplasts of the host plant through an RNA-based symmetrical rolling-circle mechanism in which oligomeric RNAs of both polarity are processed to monomeric linear RNAs (by cleavage) and to monomeric circular RNAs (by ligation). Using an experimental system consisting of transplastomic lines of the alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a mutational analysis of sequence and structural elements in the ELVd molecule that are involved in transcript processing in vivo in a chloroplastic context was carried out. A collection of six insertion and three deletion ELVd mutants was created and expressed in C. reinhardtii chloroplast. All mutants cleaved efficiently except for the control with an insertion inside the hammerhead ribozyme domain, supporting the prediction that this domain is necessary and sufficient to mediate transcript cleavage in vivo. However, two deletion mutants that cleaved efficiently showed ligation defects, indicating that during RNA circularization, other parts of the molecule are involved in addition to the hammerhead ribozyme domain. This is probably a quasi double-stranded structure present in the central part of the molecule which contains the ligation site in an internal loop. However, the mutations prevented the viroid from infecting its natural host, eggplant, indicating that they affected other essential functions in ELVd infectious cycle. The insertion in the terminal loop of the right upper hairpin of ELVd did not have this effect; it was tolerated and partially maintained in the progeny.

Is the redox state of the ci heme of the cytochrome b6f complex dependent on the occupation and structure of the Qi site and vice versa?

Oxidoreductases of the cytochrome bc(1)/b(6)f family transfer electrons from a liposoluble quinol to a soluble acceptor protein and contribute to the formation of a transmembrane electrochemical potential. The crystal structure of cyt b(6)f has revealed the presence in the Q(i) site of an atypical c-type heme, heme c(i). Surprisingly, the protein does not provide any axial ligand to the iron of this heme, and its surrounding structure suggests it can be accessed by exogenous ligand. In this work we describe a mutagenesis approach aimed at characterizing the c(i) heme and its interaction with the Q(i) site environment. We engineered a mutant of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii in which Phe(40) from subunit IV was substituted by a tyrosine. This results in a dramatic slowing down of the reoxidation of the b hemes under single flash excitation, suggesting hindered accessibility of the heme to its quinone substrate. This modified accessibility likely originates from the ligation of the heme iron by the phenol(ate) side chain introduced by the mutation. Indeed, it also results in a marked downshift of the c(i) heme midpoint potential (from +100 mV to -200 mV at pH 7). Yet the overall turnover rate of the mutant cytochrome b(6)f complex under continuous illumination was found similar to the wild type one, both in vitro and in vivo. We propose that, in the mutant, a change in the ligation state of the heme upon its reduction could act as a redox switch that would control the accessibility of the substrate to the heme and trigger the catalysis.

Multistep processing of an insertion sequence in an essential subunit of the chloroplast ClpP complex

In Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, the clpP1 chloroplast gene encoding one of the catalytic subunits of the ClpP protease complex contains a large in-frame insertion sequence (IS1). Based on the Escherichia coli ClpP structure, IS1 is predicted to protrude at the apical surface of the complex, likely influencing the interaction of the catalytic core with ClpC/HSP100 chaperones. Immunoblotting with an anti-ClpP1 antibody detected two immunoreactive forms of ClpP1: ClpP1(H) (59 kDa) and ClpP1(L) (25 kDa). It has been proposed that IS1 is a new type of protein intron (different from inteins). By studying transformants harboring mutations at the predicted borders of IS1 and tags at the C terminus of ClpP1 (tandem affinity purification tag, His tag, Strep.Tag) or within the IS1 sequence (3-hemagglutinin tag), we show that IS1 is not a protein intron and that ClpP1(L) results from endoproteolytic cleavage inside IS1. Processing sites have been identified in the middle of IS1 and near its C terminus. The sites can be mutated without abolishing processing.

Accumulation and processing of a recombinant protein designed as a cleavable fusion to the endogenous Rubisco LSU protein in Chlamydomonas chloroplast

Background

Expression of recombinant proteins in green algal chloroplast holds substantial promise as a platform for the production of human therapeutic proteins. A number of proteins have been expressed in the chloroplast of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, including complex mammalian proteins, but many of these proteins accumulate to significantly lower levels than do endogenous chloroplast proteins. We examined if recombinant protein accumulation could be enhanced by genetically fusing the recombinant reporter protein, luciferase, to the carboxy-terminal end of an abundant endogenous protein, the large subunit of ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase (Rubisco LSU). Additionally, as recombinant proteins fused to endogenous proteins are of little clinical or commercial value, we explored the possibility of engineering our recombinant protein to be cleavable from the endogenous protein in vivo. This strategy would obviate the need for further in vitro processing steps in order to produce the desired recombinant protein. To achieve this, a native protein-processing site from preferredoxin (preFd) was placed between the Rubisco LSU and luciferase coding regions in the fusion protein construct.

Results

The luciferase from the fusion protein accumulated to significantly higher levels than luciferase expressed alone. By eliminating the endogenous Rubisco large subunit gene (rbcL), we achieved a further increase in luciferase accumulation with respect to luciferase expression in the WT background. Importantly, near-wild type levels of functional Rubisco holoenzyme were generated following the proteolytic removal of the fused luciferase, while luciferase activity for the fusion protein was almost ~33 times greater than luciferase expressed alone. These data demonstrate the utility of using fusion proteins to enhance recombinant protein accumulation in algal chloroplasts, and also show that engineered proteolytic processing sites can be used to liberate the exogenous protein from the endogenous fusion partner, allowing for the purification of the intended mature protein.

Conclusion

These results demonstrate the utility of fusion proteins in algal chloroplast as a method to increase accumulation of recombinant proteins that are difficult to express. Since Rubisco is ubiquitous to land plants and green algae, this strategy may also be applied to higher plant transgenic expression systems.

Spontaneous capture of oilseed rape (Brassica napus) chloroplasts by wild B. rapa: implications for the use of chloroplast transformation for biocontainment

Environmental concerns over the cultivation of Genetically Modified (GM) crops largely centre on the ecological consequences following gene flow to wild relatives. One attractive solution is to deploy biocontainment measures that prevent hybridization. Chloroplast transformation is the most advanced biocontainment method but is compromised by chloroplast capture (hybridization through the maternal lineage). To date, however, there is a paucity of information on the frequency of chloroplast capture in the wild. Oilseed rape (Brassica napus, AACC) frequently hybridises with wild Brassica rapa (AA, as paternal parent) and yields B. rapa-like introgressed individuals after only two generations. In this study we used chloroplast CAPS markers that differentiate between the two species to survey wild and weedy populations of B. rapa for the capture of B. napus chloroplasts. A total of 464 B. rapa plants belonging to 14 populations growing either in close proximity to B. napus (i.e. sympatric <5 m) or else were allopatric from the crop (>1 km) were assessed for chloroplast capture using PCR (trnL-F) and CAPS (trnT-L-Xba I) markers. The screen revealed that two sympatric B. rapa populations included 53 plants that possessed the chloroplast of B. napus. In order to discount these B. rapa plants as F(1) crop-wild hybrids, we used a C-genome-specific marker and found that 45 out of 53 plants lacked the C-genome and so were at least second generation introgressants. The most plausible explanation is that these individuals represent multiple cases of chloroplast capture following introgressive hybridisation through the female germ line from the crop. The abundance of such plants in sympatric sites thereby questions whether the use of chloroplast transformation would provide a sufficient biocontainment for GM oilseed rape in the United Kingdom.

From Neanderthal to nanobiotech: from plant potions to pharming with plant factories

Plants were the main source for human drugs until the beginning of the nineteenth century when plant-derived pharmaceuticals were partly supplanted by drugs produced by the industrial methods of chemical synthesis. During the last decades of the twentieth century, genetic engineering has offered an alternative to chemical synthesis, using bacteria, yeasts and animal cells as factories for the production of therapeutic proteins. After a temporary decrease in interest, plants are rapidly moving back into human pharmacopoeia, with the recent development of plant-based recombinant protein production systems offering a safe and extremely cost-effective alternative to microbial and mammalian cell cultures. In this short review, we will illustrate that current improvements in plant expression systems are making them suitable as alternative factories for the production of either simple or highly complex therapeutic proteins.

Expression and function analysis of the metallothionein-like (MT-like) gene from Festuca rubra in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii chloroplast

The cDNA of the metallothionein-like (MT-like) gene from Festuca rubra cv. Merlin was optimized with bias codon of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii chloroplast genome. The optimized MT-like gene was delivered into C. reinhardtii chloroplast and the transgenic strains expressing MT-like gene was obtained. PCR-Southern blot and RT-PCR-Southern blot analysis demonstrated that the MT-like gene was integrated into chloroplast genome of C. reinhardtii and expressed at the transcriptional level. The cadmium binding capacity of the transgenic C. reinhardtii was determined by hydride generation-atomic fluorescence spectrometry (HG-AFS) and the binding properties were analyzed. Results showed that the transgenic C. reinhardtii expressing the MT-like gene exhibited remarkably higher Cd(2+) binding capacity and grew to higher densities at toxic Cd(2+) concentrations (40-100 micromol/L) than the wild type strain, and that the IC(50) of Cd(2+) (3-d treating) to algal cell growth of transgenic strain was 55.43% higher than that of the wild type strain, indicating that the Cd(2+) binding capacity and Cd(2+) tolerance of C. reinhardtii was enhanced through the expression of the foreign MT-like gene in chloroplast.

Insertional mutagenesis as a tool to study genes/functions in Chlamydomonas

The unicellular alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii has emerged during the last decades as a model system to understand gene functions, many of them shared by bacteria, fungi, plants, animals and humans. A powerful resource for the research community is the availability of complete collections of stable mutants for studying whole genome function. In the meantime other strategies might be developed; insertional mutagenesis has become currently the best strategy to disrupt and tag nuclear genes in Chlamydomonas allowing forward and reverse genetic approaches. Here, we outline the mutagenesis technique stressing the idea of generating databases for ordered mutant libraries, and also of improving efficient methods for reverse genetics to identify mutants defective in a particular gene.

Tools and techniques for chloroplast transformation of Chlamydomonas

The chloroplast organelle of plant and algal cells contains its own genetic system with a genome of a hundred or so genes. Stable transformation of the chloroplast was first achieved in 1988, using the newly developed biolistic method of DNA delivery to introduce cloned DNA into the genome of the green unicellular alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Since that time there have been significant developments in chloroplast genetic engineering using this versatile organism, and it is probable that the next few years will see increasing interest in commercial applications whereby high-value therapeutic proteins and other recombinant products are synthesized in the Chlamydomonas chloroplast. In this chapter I review the basic methodology of chloroplast transformation, the current techniques and applications, and the future possibilities for using the Chlamydomonas chloroplast as a green organelle factory.

A novel expression platform for the production of diabetes-associated autoantigen human glutamic acid decarboxylase (hGAD65)

Background

Human glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 (hGAD65) is a key autoantigen in type 1 diabetes, having much potential as an important marker for the prediction and diagnosis of type 1 diabetes, and for the development of novel antigen-specific therapies for the treatment of type 1 diabetes. However, recombinant production of hGAD65 using conventional bacterial or mammalian cell culture-based expression systems or nuclear transformed plants is limited by low yield and low efficiency. Chloroplast transformation of the unicellular eukaryotic alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii may offer a potential solution.

Results

A DNA cassette encoding full-length hGAD65, under the control of the C. reinhardtii chloroplast rbcL promoter and 5'- and 3'-UTRs, was constructed and introduced into the chloroplast genome of C. reinhardtii by particle bombardment. Integration of hGAD65 DNA into the algal chloroplast genome was confirmed by PCR. Transcriptional expression of hGAD65 was demonstrated by RT-PCR. Immunoblotting verified the expression and accumulation of the recombinant protein. The antigenicity of algal-derived hGAD65 was demonstrated with its immunoreactivity to diabetic sera by ELISA and by its ability to induce proliferation of spleen cells from NOD mice. Recombinant hGAD65 accumulated in transgenic algae, accounts for approximately 0.25–0.3% of its total soluble protein.

Conclusion

Our results demonstrate the potential value of C. reinhardtii chloroplasts as a novel platform for rapid mass production of immunologically active hGAD65. This demonstration opens the future possibility for using algal chloroplasts as novel bioreactors for the production of many other biologically active mammalian therapeutic proteins.

Selectable tolerance to herbicides by mutated acetolactate synthase genes integrated into the chloroplast genome of tobacco

Strategies employed for the production of genetically modified (GM) crops are premised on (1) the avoidance of gene transfer in the field; (2) the use of genes derived from edible organisms such as plants; (3) preventing the appearance of herbicide-resistant weeds; and (4) maintaining transgenes without obstructing plant cell propagation. To this end, we developed a novel vector system for chloroplast transformation with acetolactate synthase (ALS). ALS catalyzes the first step in the biosynthesis of the branched amino acids, and its enzymatic activity is inhibited by certain classes of herbicides. We generated a series of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) mutated ALS (mALS) genes and introduced constructs with mALS and the aminoglycoside 3'-adenyltransferase gene (aadA) into the tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) chloroplast genome by particle bombardment. Transplastomic plants were selected using their resistance to spectinomycin. The effects of herbicides on transplastomic mALS activity were examined by a colorimetric assay using the leaves of transplastomic plants. We found that transplastomic G121A, A122V, and P197S plants were specifically tolerant to pyrimidinylcarboxylate, imidazolinon, and sulfonylurea/pyrimidinylcarboxylate herbicides, respectively. Transplastomic plants possessing mALSs were able to grow in the presence of various herbicides, thus affirming the relationship between mALSs and the associated resistance to herbicides. Our results show that mALS genes integrated into the chloroplast genome are useful sustainable markers that function to exclude plants other than those that are GM while maintaining transplastomic crops. This investigation suggests that the resistance management of weeds in the field amid growing GM crops is possible using (1) a series of mALSs that confer specific resistance to herbicides and (2) a strategy that employs herbicide rotation.

Altered expression of the chloroplast ATP synthase through site-directed mutagenesis in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

The chloroplast ATP synthase gates the flow of protons out of the thylakoid lumen. In Chlamydomonas reinhardtii deletion of any of the genes for the ATP synthase subunits, or misfolding of the peptides results in photosynthetic membranes devoid of the enzyme (Lemaire and Wollman, J Biol Chem 264:675-685, 1989). This work examines the physiologic response of an algal strain in which the epsilon subunit of the chloroplast ATP synthase has been truncated. Removal of 10 amino acids from the C-terminus of the peptide results in a sharp decrease in the content of the enzyme, but does not result in its exclusion from the thylakoid membranes. The ATP synthase of this mutant strain has a higher rate of ATP hydrolysis than the wild-type enzyme. This strain of C. reinhardtii exhibits reduced growth in the light, dependence on acetate, and a low threshold for the onset of photoinhibition. The role of the ATP synthase in regulating the proton concentration of the lumen is discussed.

Recurrent invasion of mitochondrial group II introns in specimens of Pylaiella littoralis (brown alga), collected worldwide

The mitochondrial genome of a filamentous brown alga Pylaiella littoralis (strain CCMP 1907) has been reported to contain four group IIB introns in the LSU rRNA gene and three group IIA introns in the cox1 gene. We found extreme variability in the number of group II introns for these two genes by analyzing eight P. littoralis specimens collected at worldwide habitats. The first intron of the LSU rRNA gene from a specimen collected in France and the fourth intron from a specimen harvested in Japan exhibited an exceptionally long evolutionary distance when compared with the cognate introns found in P. littoralis specimens. Moreover, these introns harbored an intact or nearly intact tripartite ORF, suggesting they are the result of a recent invasion of cognate introns. Based on the fact that many of the target sites were intronless, we propose that opportunity of intron infection is the bottleneck step of the group II intron cycle which consists of invasion, degeneration, and complete loss from the target site.

[New strategy for increasing the specific and efficient expression of transgene in plastids]

Plastid gene engineering has become a new way for plant genetic improvements, particularly showing a unique application value in the use of plants as reactors to produce biopharmaceuticals and other important organic compounds. However, plastids only have a semi-autonomous transcription and translation machinery. The transcription of endogenous plastid genes is largely dependent on nuclear-encoded transcription factors. Regulation of foreign gene expression in plastids is influenced by various factors. Several technique strategies for regulation of transgene expression in plastids were reported recently, such as hybrid transcription factor-mediated system, phage T7-based transcription system and bacterial lac suppressor-based system. The application and improvement of these systems will greatly enhance the specific and effective expression of the transgenes, and achieve high-level accumulations of foreign proteins in plastids.

A protocol for expression of foreign genes in chloroplasts

Several major costs associated with the production of biopharmaceuticals or vaccines in fermentation-based systems could be minimized by using plant chloroplasts as bioreactors, which facilitates rapid scale-up. Oral delivery of chloroplast-derived therapeutic proteins through plant cells eliminates expensive purification steps, low temperature storage, transportation and sterile injections for their delivery. Chloroplast transformation technology (CTT) has also been successfully used to engineer valuable agronomic traits and for the production of industrial enzymes and biomaterials. Here, we provide a detailed protocol for the construction of chloroplast expression and integration vectors, selection and regeneration of transformants, evaluation of transgene integration and inheritance, confirmation of transgene expression and extraction, and quantitation and purification of foreign proteins. Integration of appropriate transgenes into chloroplast genomes and the resulting high levels of functional protein expression can be achieved in approximately 6 months in lettuce and tobacco. CTT is eco-friendly because transgenes are maternally inherited in most crop plants.

Genome analysis and its significance in four unicellular algae, Cyanidioschyzon [corrected] merolae, Ostreococcus tauri, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, and Thalassiosira pseudonana

Algae play a more important role than land plants in the maintenance of the global environment and productivity. Progress in genome analyses of these organisms means that we can now obtain information on algal genomes, global annotation and gene expression. The full genome information for several algae has already been analyzed. Whole genomes of the red alga Cyanidioschyzon [corrected] merolae, the green algae Ostreococcus tauri and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, and the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana have been sequenced. Genome composition and the features of cells among the four algae were compared. Each alga maintains basic genes as photosynthetic eukaryotes and possesses additional gene groups to represent their particular characteristics. This review discusses and introduces the latest research that makes the best use of the particular features of each organism and the significance of genome analysis to study biological phenomena. In particular, examples of post-genome studies of organelle multiplication in C. merolae based on analyzed genome information are presented.