The synthesis and purification of 2'-carboxy-D-arabinitol 1-phosphate, a natural inhibitor of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase, investigated by 31P n.m.r

Photosynthetic and molecular markers of CO₂-mediated photosynthetic downregulation in nodulated alfalfa

Elevated CO₂ leads to a decrease in potential net photosynthesis in long-term experiments and thus to a reduction in potential growth. This process is known as photosynthetic downregulation. There is no agreement on the definition of which parameters are the most sensitive for detecting CO₂ acclimation. In order to investigate the most sensitive photosynthetic and molecular markers of CO₂ acclimation, the effects of elevated CO₂, and associated elevated temperature were analyzed in alfalfa plants inoculated with different Sinorhizobium meliloti strains. Plants (Medicago sativa L. cv. Aragón) were grown in summer or autumn in temperature gradient greenhouses (TGG). At the end of the experiment, all plants showed acclimation in both seasons, especially under elevated summer temperatures. This was probably due to the lower nitrogen (N) availability caused by decreased N₂-fixation under higher temperatures. Photosynthesis measured at growth CO₂ concentration, rubisco in vitro activity and maximum rate of carboxylation were the most sensitive parameters for detecting downregulation. Severe acclimation was also related with decreases in leaf nitrogen content associated with declines in rubisco content (large and small subunits) and activity that resulted in a drop in photosynthesis. Despite the sensitivity of rubisco content as a marker of acclimation, it was not coordinated with gene expression, possibly due to a lag between gene transcription and protein translation.

Rubisco activities, properties, and regulation in three different C4 grasses under drought

In C4 plants, water deficit may decrease photosynthetic CO2 assimilation independently of changes in stomatal conductance, suggesting decreased turnover by ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco). The activity and biochemistry of Rubisco was studied in three different C4 grasses: Paspalum dilatatum, Cynodon dactylon, and Zoysia japonica. The objectives were to characterize the C4 Rubisco in these species and to identify factors associated with decreased photosynthetic rates caused by drought. Rubisco isolated from each of the three C4 grasses was characterized by smaller specificity factors (SC/O), larger Michaelis-Menten constants for CO2 (Kc) and O2 (Ko), and larger maximum carboxylation velocities (Vc) than Rubisco from wheat, which can be rationalized in terms of the CO2-rich environment of C4 Rubisco in the bundle sheath. During leaf dehydration the quantity and maximum activity of Rubisco remained unchanged but the initial and total activities declined slightly, possibly due to increased inhibition. Tight-binding inhibitors were present in the light but were more abundant in the dark, especially in Z. japonica, and increased in quantity with drought stress. The inhibitor from darkened leaves of Z. japonica was identified as 2-carboxyarabinitol-1-phosphate (CA1P). Consistent with the presence of CA1P, the total activity of Rubisco was decreased after 12 h darkness in Z. japonica. Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate (RuBP) in the leaves decreased with drought stress, to quantities approximating those of Rubisco catalytic sites. The magnitude of the decrease in RuBP suggested that, at least in C. dactylon and Z. japonica, it could contribute to the drought-induced decrease in photosynthesis.

Rubisco activity: effects of drought stress

Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) activity is modulated in vivo either by reaction with CO2 and Mg2+ to carbamylate a lysine residue in the catalytic site, or by the binding of inhibitors within the catalytic site. Binding of inhibitors blocks either activity or the carbamylation of the lysine residue that is essential for activity. At night, in many species, 2-carboxyarabinitol-1-phosphate (CA1P) is formed which binds tightly to Rubisco, inhibiting catalytic activity. Recent work has shown that tight-binding inhibitors can also decrease Rubisco activity in the light and contribute to the regulation of Rubisco activity. Here we determine the influence that such inhibitors of Rubisco exert on catalytic activity during drought stress. In tobacco plants, 'total Rubisco activity', i.e. the activity following pre-incubation with CO2 and Mg2+, was positively correlated with leaf relative water content. However, 'total Rubisco activity' in extracts from leaves with low water potential increased markedly when tightly bound inhibitors were removed, thus increasing the number of catalytic sites available. This suggests that in tobacco the decrease of Rubisco activity under drought stress is not primarily the result of changes in activation by CO2 and Mg2+ but due rather to the presence of tight-binding inhibitors. The amounts of inhibitor present in leaves of droughted tobacco based on the decrease in Rubisco activity per mg soluble protein were usually much greater than the amounts of the known inhibitors (CA1P and 'daytime inhibitor') that can be recovered in acid extracts. Alternative explanations for the difference between maximal and total activities are discussed.

2'-carboxy-D-arabitinol 1-phosphate protects ribulose 1, 5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase against proteolytic breakdown

Trypsin-catalysed cleavage of purified ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) and the resultant irreversible loss of carboxylase activity were prevented by prior incubation with the naturally occurring nocturnal Rubisco inhibitor 2'-carboxy-D-arabitinol 1-phosphate (CA1P), as well as with ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate (RuBP), Mg2+ and CO2. CA1P also protected Rubisco from loss of activity caused by carboxypeptidase A. When similar experiments were carried out using soluble chloroplast proteases, CA1P was again able to protect Rubisco against proteolytic degradation and the consequent irreversible loss of catalytic activity. Thus, CA1P prevents the proteolytic breakdown of Rubisco by endogenous and exogenous proteases. In this way, CA1P may affect the amounts of Rubisco protein available for photosynthetic CO2 assimilation. Rubisco turnover (in the presence of RuBP, Mg2+ and CO2) may confer similar protection against proteases in the light.

Regulation of 2-carboxy-D-arabinitol 1-phosphate phosphatase: activation by glutathione and interaction with thiol reagents

2-Carboxy-D-arabinitol 1-phosphate (CA1P) phosphatase de- grades CA1P, an inhibitor associated with the regulation of ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase in numerous plant species. CA1P phosphatase purified from Phaseolus vulgaris was partially inactivated by oxidizing conditions during dialysis in air-equilibrated buffer. Phosphatase activity could then be stimulated 1.3-fold by dithiothreitol and also by addition of reduced thioredoxin from Escherichia coli. These effects were enhanced synergistically by the positive effector, fructose 1, 6-bisphosphate (FBP). Most notably, CA1P phosphatase activity was stimulated up to 35-fold by glutathione, and was sensitive to the ratio of reduced (GSH) to oxidized (GSSG) forms. At concentrations of glutathione approximating measured levels in chloroplasts of P. vulgaris (5 mM total S), CA1P phosphatase exhibited >20-fold stimulation by a change in the redox status of glutathione from 60 to 100% GSH. This stimulation was augmented further by reduced E. coli thioredoxin. In contrast, FBP, which activates CA1P phosphatase under reducing conditions, was strongly inhibitory in the presence of GSSG. We propose that glutathione may have an appreciable role in the light/dark regulation of CA1P phosphatase in vivo. A model for the reversible activation of CA1P phosphatase by GSH was derived based upon the various responses of the enzyme's activity to a range of thiol reagents including N-ethylmaleimide, 5, 5'-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) and arsenite. These data indicate that the bean enzyme contains two physically distinct sets of thiol groups that are critical to its redox regulation.

Plastome engineering of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase in tobacco to form a sunflower large subunit and tobacco small subunit hybrid

Targeted gene replacement in plastids was used to explore whether the rbcL gene that codes for the large subunit of ribulose-1, 5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase, the key enzyme of photosynthetic CO2 fixation, might be replaced with altered forms of the gene. Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) plants were transformed with plastid DNA that contained the rbcL gene from either sunflower (Helianthus annuus) or the cyanobacterium Synechococcus PCC6301, along with a selectable marker. Three stable lines of transformants were regenerated that had altered rbcL genes. Those containing the rbcL gene for cyanobacterial ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase produced mRNA but no large subunit protein or enzyme activity. Those tobacco plants expressing the sunflower large subunit synthesized a catalytically active hybrid form of the enzyme composed of sunflower large subunits and tobacco small subunits. A third line expressed a chimeric sunflower/tobacco large subunit arising from homologous recombination within the rbcL gene that had properties similar to the hybrid enzyme. This study demonstrated the feasibility of using a binary system in which different forms of the rbcL gene are constructed in a bacterial host and then introduced into a vector for homologous recombination in transformed chloroplasts to produce an active, chimeric enzyme in vivo.

Intracellular localization of CA1P and CA1P phosphatase activity in leaves of Phaseolus vulgaris L

CA1P and CA1P phosphatase occur in the chloroplasts of leaf mesophyll cells of many species. However, whether either may occur exclusively in the chloroplast has not yet been established. To examine their intracellular distribution, mature, dark-or light-treated leaves of Phaseolus vulgaris were frozen, lyophilized and then centrifuged in density gradients of heptane and tetrachloroethylene. After gradient fractionation, both CA1P and CA1P phosphatase activity co-segregated with chloroplast material. Distribution analyses using sub-cellular compartment markers indicated that both CA1P and CA1P phosphatase do occur exclusively in leaf chloroplasts.

Evidence that some dinoflagellates contain a ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase related to that of the alpha-proteobacteria

The ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) large subunit from several dinoflagellates has a structure similar to that of the Form II enzyme from Rhodospirillum and Rhodobacter species rather than the Form I Rubisco of eukaryotic algae and higher plants. The dinoflagellate Rubisco was identified on native polyacrylamide gels by autoradiographic detection of the stable Rubisco-[2'-14C]-2-carboxy-D-arabinitol 1,5-bisphosphate complex. The antibody to the Symbiodinium sp. large subunit cross reacts with both the Rhodospirillum rubrum and Rhodobacter sphaeroides Form II enzyme whereas antibodies to the R. rubrum Rubisco cross react with a range of dinoflagellate Rubisco large subunits. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of the large subunit from both Symbiodinium sp. and Amphidinium carterae confirmed this relation. The lack of inhibition of the dinoflagellate Rubisco by 6-phosphogluconate is consistent with this structure.

Evidence That 2-Carboxyarabinitol 1-Phosphate Binds to Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphate Carboxylase in Vivo

An important question concerning the role of carboxyarabinitol 1-phosphate (CA1P) metabolism in the light-dependent regulation of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) activity is the extent to which CA1P is bound to Rubisco in vivo. We report here the development of an extraction procedure using ammonium sulfate that stabilizes CA1P bound to Rubisco. This procedure exploits the ability of sulfate to bind at the catalytic site of Rubisco and to competitively balance the binding and release of CA1P from Rubisco. In darkened bean leaves about 75% of the Rubisco catalytic sites were found to be bound with CA1P. This confirms previous indirect estimates from gas exchange measurements. We have used this extraction procedure to examine CA1P-Rubisco interactions in bean during a natural transition from darkness to light. With increasing light intensity following sunrise, CA1P degradation proceeded in two distinct phases: first, a majority of the unbound CA1P pool was degraded at very low light levels ([less than or equal to]30 [mu]mol quanta m-2 s-1); second, CA1P initially bound to Rubisco was then degraded at increasing light levels (>30 [mu]mol quanta m-2 s-1). These results indicate that there is a low-fluence activation of CA1P phosphatase that can occur prior to CA1P release by Rubisco activase. This activation may be mediated by NADPH. During sunrise in bean, the level of the catalytically competent form of Rubisco was regulated by CA1P metabolism.

Identification and functional analysis of chaperonin 10, the groES homolog from yeast mitochondria

Chaperonin 60 (cpn60) and chaperonin 10 (cpn10) constitute the chaperonin system in prokaryotes, mitochondria, and chloroplasts. In Escherichia coli, these two chaperonins are also termed groEL and groES. We have used a functional assay to identify the groES homolog cpn10 in yeast mitochondria. When dimeric ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase (Rubisco) is denatured and allowed to bind to yeast cpn60, subsequent refolding of Rubisco is strictly dependent upon yeast cpn10. The heterologous combination of cpn60 from E. coli plus yeast cpn10 is also functional. In contrast, yeast cpn60 plus E. coli cpn10 do not support refolding of Rubisco. In the presence of MgATP, yeast cpn60 and yeast cpn10 form a stable complex that can be isolated by gel filtration and that facilitates refolding of denatured Rubisco. Although the potassium-dependent ATPase activity of E. coli cpn60 can be inhibited by cpn10 from either E. coli or yeast, neither of these cpn10s inhibits the ATPase activity of yeast cpn60. Amino acid sequencing of yeast cpn10 reveals substantial similarity to the corresponding cpn10 proteins from rat mitochondria and prokaryotes.

Subunit interactions of Rubisco activase: polyethylene glycol promotes self-association, stimulates ATPase and activation activities, and enhances interactions with Rubisco

The effect of polyethylene glycol (PEG) on the enzymatic and physical properties of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) activase was examined. In the presence of PEG, Rubisco activase exhibited higher ATPase and Rubisco activating activities, concomitant with increased apparent affinity for ATP and Rubisco. Specific ATPase activity, which was dependent on Rubisco activase concentration, was also higher in the presence of Ficoll, polyvinylpyrrolidone, and bovine serum albumin. The ability of Rubisco activase to facilitate dissociation of the tight-binding inhibitor 2-carboxyarabinitol 1-phosphate from carbamylated Rubisco was also enhanced in the presence of PEG. Mixing experiments with Rubisco activase from two different sources showed that tobacco Rubisco activase, which exhibited little activation of spinach Rubisco by itself, was inhibitory when included with spinach Rubisco activase. Polyethylene glycol improved the ability of tobacco and a mixture of tobacco plus spinach Rubisco activase to activate spinach Rubisco. Estimates based on rate zonal sedimentation and gel-filtration chromatography indicated that the apparent molecular mass of Rubisco activase was two- to fourfold higher in the presence of PEG. The increase in apparent molecular mass was consistent with the propensity of solvent-excluding reagents like PEG to promote self-association of proteins. Likewise, the change in enzymatic properties of Rubisco activase in the presence of PEG and the dependence of specific activity on protein concentration resembled changes that often accompany self-association. For Rubisco activase, high concentrations of protein in the chloroplast stroma would provide an environment conducive to self-association and cause expression of properties that would enhance its ability to function efficiently in vivo.

Purification and properties of a phosphatase in French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) leaves that hydrolyses 2'-carboxy-D-arabinitol 1-phosphate

An enzyme that releases P(i) from 2-carboxy-D-arabinitol 1-phosphate, a naturally occurring tightly binding inhibitor of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (EC 4.1.1.39), was purified from leaves of French bean seedlings. It was a monomeric protein of M(r) about 56,000. Catalytic activity was stimulated by increased concentrations of inorganic salts to a maximum at an ionic strength above 0.2. NADPH and D-fructose 1,6-bisphosphate increased the activity of the enzyme in both the presence and absence of 0.2 M-KCl. The pure enzyme did not require dithiothreitol for activity. The pH optimum was 7, the Km for 2-carboxy-D-arabinitol 1-phosphate was 0.43 mM and the specific activity 6.8 mumol/min per mg of protein. The enzyme had little or no activity against phosphate ester intermediates of photosynthetic metabolism and glycolysis but hydrolysed the 1,5-bisphosphates of 2'-carboxy-D-ribitol and 2'-carboxy-D-arabinitol more rapidly than 2'-carboxy-D-arabinitol 1-phosphate.

Identification and levels of 2'-carboxyarabinitol in leaves

2'-Carboxyarabinitol 1-phosphate (CA1P) is a naturally occurring inhibitor of ribulose-1,5 bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase activity. A chloroplast phosphatase has previously been identified that degrades CA1P in vitro to carboxyarabinitol (CA) plus phosphate, but CA has not yet been detected in plants. Here, we detail procedures to isolate and assay CA from leaves and utilize mass spectrometry to demonstrate for the first time that CA is present in plants. CA was present in leaves of all 13 species examined, including those of C(3), C(4), and Crassulacean acid metabolism photosynthetic subgroups. CA was present both in species with high levels of CA1P (e.g. Phaseolus vulgaris, Lycopersicon esculentum, Beta vulgaris) as well as in species with low levels of CA1P (e.g. Spinacea oleracea, Triticum aestivum). CA levels in the light were sometimes greater than those in the dark. Bean leaves had the most CA of any species tested, with levels in the light approaching 1 micromole per milligram of chlorophyll. In illuminated bean leaves, about 63% of the CA is located outside the chloroplast. CA is one of only a few branched chain sugar acids to be identified from plants.

Metabolism of 2'-carboxyarabinitol in leaves

Results presented here indicate that 2'-carboxyarabinitol (CA) is the in vivo precursor and product of 2'-carboxyarabinitol 1-phosphate (CA1P) metabolism in leaves. When [2-(14)C]CA was fed in the light to leaves of five species known to be highly active in CA1P metabolism (Phaseolus vulgaris, Lycopersicon esculentum, Helianthus annuus, Petunia hybrida, and Beta vulgaris), [(14)C]CA1P was formed in the dark. Reillumination of a Phaseolus leaf caused this [(14)C]CA1P to be rapidly metabolized to [(14)C]CA (t((1/2)) = 1 min). The epimer 2'-carboxyribitol could not substitute for CA in the dark synthesis of CA1P, and CA in the anionic form was a better substrate than CA in the lactone form. In leaves of Phaseolus vulgaris, the active CA pool size used in the dark synthesis of CA1P is between about 70 and 110 nanomoles per milligram of chlorophyll. The photosynthetic electron transport inhibitor diuron did not affect the dark synthesis of [(14)C]CA1P, but did greatly reduce the rate of its subsequent light degradation (t((1/2)) = approximately 10 min). Dark synthesis of [(14)C]CA1P was inhibited by dithiothreitol and NaF. From the present data, we suggest that CA1P and CA participate in a metabolic substrate cycle in vivo.

Measurement of 2-carboxyarabinitol 1-phosphate in plant leaves by isotope dilution

The level of 2-carboxyarabinitol 1-phosphate (CA1P) in leaves of 12 species was determined by an isotope dilution assay. (14)C-labeled standard was synthesized from [2-(14)C]carboxyarabinitol 1,5-bisphosphate using acid phosphatase, and was added at the initial point of leaf extraction. Leaf CA1P was purified and its specific activity determined. CA1P was found in dark-treated leaves of all species examined, including spinach (Spinacea oleracea), wheat (Triticum aestivum), Arabidopsis thaliana, and maize (Zea mays). The highest amounts were found in bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) and petunia (Petunia hybrida), which had 1.5 to 1.8 moles CA1P per mole ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase catalytic sites. Most species had intermediate amounts of CA1P (0.2 to 0.8 mole CA1P per mole catalytic sites). Such intermediate to high levels of CA1P support the hypothesis that CA1P functions in many species as a light-dependent regulator of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase activity and whole leaf photosynthetic CO(2) assimilation. However, CA1P levels in spinach, wheat, and A. thaliana were particularly low (less than 0.09 mole CA1P per mole catalytic sites). In such species, CA1P does not likely have a significant role in regulating ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase activity, but could have a different physiological role.

Chaperonin-facilitated refolding of ribulosebisphosphate carboxylase and ATP hydrolysis by chaperonin 60 (groEL) are K+ dependent

Both the chaperonin- and MgATP-dependent reconstitution of unfolded ribulosebisphosphate carboxylase (Rubisco) and the uncoupled ATPase activity of chaperonin 60 (groEL) require ionic potassium. The spontaneous, chaperonin-independent reconstitution of Rubisco, observed at 15 but not at 25 degrees C, requires no K+ and is actually inhibited by chaperonin 60, with which the unfolded or partly folded Rubisco forms a stable binary complex. The chaperonin-dependent reconstitution of Rubisco involves the formation of a complex between chaperonin 60 and chaperonin 10 (groES). Formation of this complex almost completely inhibits the uncoupled ATPase activity of chaperonin 60. Furthermore, although the formation of the chaperonin 60-chaperonin 10 complex requires the presence of MgATP, hydrolysis of ATP may not be required, since complex formation occurs in the absence of K+. The interaction of chaperonin 60 with unfolded or partly folded Rubisco does not require MgATP, K+, or chaperonin 10. However, discharge of the complex of chaperonin 60-Rubisco, which leads to the formation of active Rubisco dimers, requires chaperonin 10 and a coupled, K(+)-dependent hydrolysis of ATP. We propose that a role of chaperonin 10 is to couple the K(+)-dependent hydrolysis of ATP to the release of the folded monomers of the target protein from chaperonin 60.

Metabolism of 2-carboxyarabinitol 1-phosphate and regulation of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase activity

Metabolism of 2'-carboxy-D-arabinitol 1-phosphate (CA1P) is an important component in the light-dependent regulation of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase (Rubisco) activity and whole leaf photosynthetic CO2 assimilation in many species, and functions as one mechanism for regulating Rubisco activity when photosynthesis is light-limited. Species differ in their capacity to accumulate CA1P, ranging from those which can synthesize levels of this compound approaching or in excess of the Rubisco catalytic site concentration, to those which apparently lack the capacity for CA1P synthesis. CA1P is structurally related to the six carbon transition state intermediate of the carboxylation reaction and binds tightly to the carbamylated catalytic site of Rubisco, making that site unavailable for catalysis. Under steady-state, the concentration of CA1P in the leaf is highest at low photon flux density (PFD) or in the dark. Degradation of CA1P and recovery of Rubisco activity requires light and is stimulated by increasing PFD. The initial degradation reaction is catalyzed by an enzyme located in the chloroplast stroma, CA1P phosphatase, which yields carboxyarabinitol (CA) and inorganic phosphate as its products. The pathway of CA metabolism in the plant remains to be determined. Synthesis of CA1P occurs in the dark, and in Phaseolus vulgaris this process has been shown to be stimulated by low PFD. The pathway of CA1P synthesis and its relationship to the degradative pathway remains unknown at the present time. The discovery of the existence of this previously unknown carbon pathway in photosynthesis indicates that we still have much to learn concerning the regulation of Rubisco activity and photosynthesis.