Photosystem II antenna phosphorylation-dependent protein diffusion determined by fluorescence correlation spectroscopy

Macroscale structural changes of thylakoid architecture during high light acclimation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Photoprotection mechanisms are ubiquitous among photosynthetic organisms. The photoprotection capacity of the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is correlated with protein levels of stress-related light-harvesting complex (LHCSR) proteins, which are strongly induced by high light (HL). However, the dynamic response of overall thylakoid structure during acclimation to growth in HL has not been fully understood. Here, we combined live-cell super-resolution microscopy and analytical membrane subfractionation to investigate macroscale structural changes of thylakoid membranes during HL acclimation in Chlamydomonas. Subdiffraction-resolution live-cell imaging revealed that the overall thylakoid structures became thinned and shrunken during HL acclimation. The stromal space around the pyrenoid also became enlarged. Analytical density-dependent membrane fractionation indicated that the structural changes were partly a consequence of membrane unstacking. The analysis of both an LHCSR loss-of-function mutant, npq4 lhcsr1, and a regulatory mutant that over-expresses LHCSR, spa1-1, showed that structural changes occurred independently of LHCSR protein levels, demonstrating that LHCSR was neither necessary nor sufficient to induce the thylakoid structural changes associated with HL acclimation. In contrast, stt7-9, a mutant lacking a kinase of major light-harvesting antenna proteins, had a slower thylakoid structural response to HL relative to all other lines tested but still showed membrane unstacking. These results indicate that neither LHCSR- nor antenna-phosphorylation-dependent HL acclimation are required for the observed macroscale structural changes of thylakoid membranes in HL conditions.

Microdomains heterogeneity in the thylakoid membrane proteins visualized by super-resolution microscopy

The investigation of spatial heterogeneity within the thylakoid membrane (TM) proteins has gained increasing attention in photosynthetic research. The recent advances in live-cell imaging have allowed the identification of heterogeneous organisation of photosystems in small cyanobacterial cells. These sub-micrometre TM regions, termed microdomains in cyanobacteria, exhibit functional similarities with granal (Photosystem II dominant) and stromal (Photosystem I dominant) regions observed in TM of higher plants. This study delves into microdomain heterogeneity using super-resolution Airyscan-based microscopy enhancing resolution to approximately ~125 nm in x-y dimension. The new data reveal membrane areas rich in Photosystem I within the inner TM rings. Moreover, we identified analogous dynamics in the mobility of Photosystem II and phycobilisomes; countering earlier models that postulated differing mobility of these complexes. These novel findings thus hold significance for our understanding of photosynthesis regulation, particularly during state transitions.

Spatial proteomics of vesicular trafficking: coupling mass spectrometry and imaging approaches in membrane biology

In plants, membrane compartmentalization requires vesicle trafficking for communication among distinct organelles. Membrane proteins involved in vesicle trafficking are highly dynamic and can respond rapidly to changes in the environment and to cellular signals. Capturing their localization and dynamics is thus essential for understanding the mechanisms underlying vesicular trafficking pathways. Quantitative mass spectrometry and imaging approaches allow a system-wide dissection of the vesicular proteome, the characterization of ligand-receptor pairs and the determination of secretory, endocytic, recycling and vacuolar trafficking pathways. In this review, we highlight major proteomics and imaging methods employed to determine the location, distribution and abundance of proteins within given trafficking routes. We focus in particular on methodologies for the elucidation of vesicle protein dynamics and interactions and their connections to downstream signalling outputs. Finally, we assess their biological applications in exploring different cellular and subcellular processes.

Size and Fluorescence Properties of Algal Photosynthetic Antenna Proteins Estimated by Microscopy

Antenna proteins play a major role in the regulation of light-harvesting in photosynthesis. However, less is known about a possible link between their sizes (oligomerization state) and fluorescence intensity (number of photons emitted). Here, we used a microscopy-based method, Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy (FCS), to analyze different antenna proteins at the particle level. The direct comparison indicated that Chromera Light Harvesting (CLH) antenna particles (isolated from Chromera velia) behaved as the monomeric Light Harvesting Complex II (LHCII) (from higher plants), in terms of their radius (based on the diffusion time) and fluorescence yields. FCS data thus indicated a monomeric oligomerization state of algal CLH antenna (at our experimental conditions) that was later confirmed also by biochemical experiments. Additionally, our data provide a proof of concept that the FCS method is well suited to measure proteins sizes (oligomerization state) and fluorescence intensities (photon counts) of antenna proteins per single particle (monomers and oligomers). We proved that antenna monomers (CLH and LHCIIm) are more "quenched" than the corresponding trimers. The FCS measurement thus represents a useful experimental approach that allows studying the role of antenna oligomerization in the mechanism of photoprotection.

Antenna Protein Clustering In Vitro Unveiled by Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy

Antenna protein aggregation is one of the principal mechanisms considered effective in protecting phototrophs against high light damage. Commonly, it is induced, in vitro, by decreasing detergent concentration and pH of a solution of purified antennas; the resulting reduction in fluorescence emission is considered to be representative of non-photochemical quenching in vivo. However, little is known about the actual size and organization of antenna particles formed by this means, and hence the physiological relevance of this experimental approach is questionable. Here, a quasi-single molecule method, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS), was applied during in vitro quenching of LHCII trimers from higher plants for a parallel estimation of particle size, fluorescence, and antenna cluster homogeneity in a single measurement. FCS revealed that, below detergent critical micelle concentration, low pH promoted the formation of large protein oligomers of sizes up to micrometers, and therefore is apparently incompatible with thylakoid membranes. In contrast, LHCII clusters formed at high pH were smaller and homogenous, and yet still capable of efficient quenching. The results altogether set the physiological validity limits of in vitro quenching experiments. Our data also support the idea that the small, moderately quenching LHCII oligomers found at high pH could be relevant with respect to non-photochemical quenching in vivo.

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.

Lattice Models for Protein Organization throughout Thylakoid Membrane Stacks

Proteins in photosynthetic membranes can organize into patterned arrays that span the membrane's lateral size. Attractions between proteins in different layers of a membrane stack can play a key role in this ordering, as was suggested by microscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy and demonstrated by computer simulations of a coarse-grained model. The architecture of thylakoid membranes, however, also provides opportunities for interlayer interactions that instead disfavor the high protein densities of ordered arrangements. Here, we explore the interplay between these opposing driving forces and, in particular, the phase transitions that emerge in the periodic geometry of stacked thylakoid membrane disks. We propose a lattice model that roughly accounts for proteins' attraction within a layer and across the stromal gap, steric repulsion across the lumenal gap, and regulation of protein density by exchange with the stroma lamellae. Mean-field analysis and computer simulation reveal rich phase behavior for this simple model, featuring a broken-symmetry striped phase that is disrupted at both high and low extremes of chemical potential. The resulting sensitivity of microscopic protein arrangement to the thylakoid's mesoscale vertical structure raises intriguing possibilities for regulation of photosynthetic function.

Role of Protein-Water Interface in the Stacking Interactions of Granum Thylakoid Membranes-As Revealed by the Effects of Hofmeister Salts

The thylakoid membranes of vascular plants are differentiated into stacked granum and unstacked stroma regions. The formation of grana is triggered by the macrodomain formation of photosystem II and light-harvesting complex II (PSII-LHCII) and thus their lateral segregation from the photosystem I-light-harvesting complex I (PSI-LHCI) super-complexes and the ATP-synthase; which is then stabilized by stacking interactions of the adjacent PSII-LHCII enriched regions of the thylakoid membranes. The self-assembly and dynamics of this highly organized membrane system and the nature of forces acting between the PSII-LHCII macrodomains are not well understood. By using circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy, small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), we investigated the effects of Hofmeister salts on the organization of pigment-protein complexes and on the ultrastructure of thylakoid membranes. We found that the kosmotropic agent (NH₄)₂SO₄ and the Hofmeister-neutral NaCl, up to 2 M concentrations, hardly affected the macro-organization of the protein complexes and the membrane ultrastructure. In contrast, chaotropic salts, NaClO₄, and NaSCN destroyed the mesoscopic structures, the multilamellar organization of the thylakoid membranes and the chiral macrodomains of the protein complexes but without noticeably affecting the short-range, pigment-pigment excitonic interactions. Comparison of the concentration- and time-dependences of SANS, TEM and CD parameters revealed the main steps of the disassembly of grana in the presence of chaotropes. It begins with a rapid diminishment of the long-range periodic order of the grana membranes, apparently due to an increased stacking disorder of the thylakoid membranes, as reflected by SANS experiments. SANS measurements also allowed discrimination between the cationic and anionic effects-in stacking and disorder, respectively. This step is followed by a somewhat slower disorganization of the TEM ultrastructure, due to the gradual loss of stacked membrane pairs. Occurring last is the stepwise decrease and disappearance of the long-range chiral order of the protein complexes, the rate of which was faster in LHCII-deficient membranes. These data are interpreted in terms of a theory, from our laboratory, according to which Hofmeister salts primarily affect the hydrophylic-hydrophobic interactions of proteins, and the stroma-exposed regions of the intrinsic membrane proteins, in particular-pointing to the role of protein-water interface in the stacking interactions of granum thylakoid membranes.

Proteome modifications on tomato under extreme high light induced-stress

BACKGROUND

Abiotic stress reduces photosynthetic yield and plant growth, negatively impacting global crop production and is a major constraint faced by agriculture. However, the knowledge on the impact on plants under extremely high irradiance is limited. We present the first in-depth proteomics analysis of plants treated with a method developed by our research group to generate a light gradient using an extremely intense light.

METHODS

The method consists of utilizing light emitting diodes (LED) to create a single spot at 24,000 μmol m- 2 s- 1 irradiance, generating three light stress levels. A light map and temperature profile were obtained during the light experiment. The proteins expressed in the treated tomato (Solanum lycopersicum, Heinz H1706) leaves were harvested 10 days after the treatment, allowing for the detection of proteins involved in a long-term recovery. A multiplex labeled proteomics method (iTRAQ) was analyzed by LC-MS/MS.

RESULTS

A total of 3994 proteins were identified at 1% false discovery rate and matched additional quality filters. Hierarchical clustering analysis resulted in four types of patterns related to the protein expression, with one being directly linked to the increased LED irradiation. A total of 37 proteins were found unique to the least damaged leaf zone, while the medium damaged zone had 372 proteins, and the severely damaged presented unique 1003 proteins. Oxygen evolving complex and PSII complex proteins (PsbH, PsbS, PsbR and Psb28) were found to be abundant in the most damaged leaf zone. This leaf zone presented a protein involved in the salicylic acid response, while it was not abundant in the other leaf zones. The mRNA level of PsbR was significantly lower (1-fold) compared the control in the most damaged zone of the leaf, while Psb28 and PsbH were lower (1-fold) in the less damaged leaf zones. PsbS mRNA abundance in all leaf zones tested presented no statistically significant change from the control.

CONCLUSIONS

We present the first characterization of the proteome changes caused by an extreme level of high-light intensity (24,000 μmol m- 2 s- 1). The proteomics results show the presence of specific defense responses to each level of light intensity, with a possible involvement of proteins PsbH, Psb28, PsbR, and PsbS.

Bio-Optics and Bio-Inspired Optical Materials

Through the use of the limited materials palette, optimally designed micro- and nanostructures, and tightly regulated processes, nature demonstrates exquisite control of light-matter interactions at various length scales. In fact, control of light-matter interactions is an important element in the evolutionary arms race and has led to highly engineered optical materials and systems. In this review, we present a detailed summary of various optical effects found in nature with a particular emphasis on the materials and optical design aspects responsible for their optical functionality. Using several representative examples, we discuss various optical phenomena, including absorption and transparency, diffraction, interference, reflection and antireflection, scattering, light harvesting, wave guiding and lensing, camouflage, and bioluminescence, that are responsible for the unique optical properties of materials and structures found in nature and biology. Great strides in understanding the design principles adapted by nature have led to a tremendous progress in realizing biomimetic and bioinspired optical materials and photonic devices. We discuss the various micro- and nanofabrication techniques that have been employed for realizing advanced biomimetic optical structures.

Light-induced formation of dimeric LHCII

It emerges from numerous experiments that LHCII, the major photosynthetic antenna complex of plants, can appear not only in the trimeric or monomeric states but also as a dimer. We address the problem whether the dimeric form of the complex is just a simple intermediate element of the trimer-monomer transformation or if it can also be a physiologically relevant molecular organization form? Dimers of LHCII were analyzed with application of native electrophoresis, time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy, and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy. The results reveal the appearance of two types of LHCII dimers: one formed by the dissociation of one monomer from the trimeric structure and the other formed by association of monomers into a distinctively different molecular organizational form, characterized by a high rate of chlorophyll excitation quenching. The hypothetical structure of such an energy quencher is proposed. The high light-induced LHCII dimerization is discussed as a potential element of the photoprotective response in plants.

Fringe-tunable electrothermal Fresnel mirror for use in compact and high-speed diffusion sensor

This paper reports the development of an electrothermal microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) mirror with serpentine shape actuators. A micro Fresnel mirror with fringe-spacing tunability is required to realize a compact and high-speed diffusion sensor for biological samples whose diffusion coefficient changes significantly because of a conformational change. In this case, the measurement time-constant is dependent on the fringe-spacing and diffusion coefficient of the sample. In this study, a fringe-tunable MEMS mirror with an actuation voltage less than 10 V was developed. The characteristics of the fabricated mirror were investigated experimentally. A high-visibility optical interference fringe was successfully demonstrated using both an ultranarrow-linewidth solid-state laser and a low-cost compact laser diode. The experimental results demonstrated a distinct possibility of developing a measurement device using only simple and low-voltage optical components.

Quantification of Membrane Protein Dynamics and Interactions in Plant Cells by Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy

Deciphering the dynamics of protein and lipid molecules on appropriate spatial and temporal scales may shed light on protein function and membrane organization. However, traditional bulk approaches cannot unambiguously quantify the extremely diverse mobility and interactions of proteins in living cells. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is a powerful technique to describe events that occur at the single-molecule level and on the nanosecond to second timescales; therefore, FCS can provide data on the heterogeneous organization of membrane systems. FCS can also be combined with other microscopy techniques, such as super-resolution techniques. More importantly, FCS is minimally invasive, which makes it an ideal approach to detect the heterogeneous distribution and dynamics of key proteins during development. In this review, we give a brief introduction about the development of FCS and summarize the significant contributions of FCS in understanding the organization of plant cell membranes and the dynamics and interactions of membrane proteins. We also discuss the potential applications of this technique in plant biology.

Live-cell visualization of excitation energy dynamics in chloroplast thylakoid structures

The intricate molecular processes underlying photosynthesis have long been studied using various analytic approaches. However, the three-dimensional (3D) dynamics of such photosynthetic processes remain unexplored due to technological limitations related to investigating intraorganellar mechanisms in vivo. By developing a system for high-speed 3D laser scanning confocal microscopy combined with high-sensitivity multiple-channel detection, we visualized excitation energy dynamics in thylakoid structures within chloroplasts of live Physcomitrella patens cells. Two distinct thylakoid structures in the chloroplast, namely the grana and stroma lamellae, were visualized three-dimensionally in live cells. The simultaneous detection of the shorter (than ~670 nm) and longer (than ~680 nm) wavelength regions of chlorophyll (Chl) fluorescence reveals different spatial characteristics-irregular and vertical structures, respectively. Spectroscopic analyses showed that the shorter and longer wavelength regions of Chl fluorescence are affected more by free light-harvesting antenna proteins and photosystem II supercomplexes, respectively. The high-speed 3D time-lapse imaging of the shorter and longer wavelength regions also reveals different structural dynamics-rapid and slow movements within 1.5 seconds, respectively. Such structural dynamics of the two wavelength regions of Chl fluorescence would indicate excitation energy dynamics between light-harvesting antenna proteins and photosystems, reflecting the energetically active nature of photosynthetic proteins in thylakoid membranes.

Visualizing the dynamic structure of the plant photosynthetic membrane

The chloroplast thylakoid membrane is the site for the initial steps of photosynthesis that convert solar energy into chemical energy, ultimately powering almost all life on earth. The heterogeneous distribution of protein complexes within the membrane gives rise to an intricate three-dimensional structure that is nonetheless extremely dynamic on a timescale of seconds to minutes. These dynamics form the basis for the regulation of photosynthesis, and therefore the adaptability of plants to different environments. High-resolution microscopy has in recent years begun to provide new insights into the structural dynamics underlying a number of regulatory processes such as membrane stacking, photosystem II repair, photoprotective energy dissipation, state transitions and alternative electron transfer. Here we provide an overview of the essentials of thylakoid membrane structure in plants, and consider how recent advances, using a range of microscopies, have substantially increased our knowledge of the thylakoid dynamic structure. We discuss both the successes and limitations of the currently available techniques and highlight newly emerging microscopic methods that promise to move the field beyond the current 'static' view of membrane organization based on frozen snapshots to a 'live' view of functional membranes imaged under native aqueous conditions at ambient temperature and responding dynamically to external stimuli.

Toward understanding the multiple spatiotemporal dynamics of chlorophyll fluorescence

Dynamic reorganization of photosystems I and II is suggested to occur in chloroplast thylakoid membranes to maintain the efficiency of photosynthesis under fluctuating light conditions. To directly observe the process in action, live-cell imaging techniques are necessary. Using live-cell imaging, we have shown that the fine thylakoid structures in the moss Physcomitrella patens are flexible in time. However, the spatiotemporal resolution of a conventional confocal microscopy limits more precise visualization of entire thylakoid structures and understanding of the structural dynamics. Here, we discuss the issues related to observing chlorophyll fluorescence at multiple spatiotemporal scales in vivo and in vitro.