cPPB-aE is discovered from photosynthetic benthic dinoflagellates

Chlorophyll Degradation and Its Physiological Function

Research on chlorophyll degradation has progressed significantly in recent decades. In the 1990s, the structure of linear tetrapyrrole, which is unambiguously a chlorophyll degradation product, was determined. From the 2000s until the 2010s, the major enzymes involved in chlorophyll degradation were identified, and the pheophorbide a oxygenase/phyllobilin pathway was established. This degradation pathway encompasses several steps: (i) initial conversion of chlorophyll b to 7-hydroxymethyl chlorophyll a, (ii) conversion of 7-hydroxymethyl chlorophyll a to chlorophyll a, (iii) dechelation of chlorophyll a to pheophytin a, (iv) dephytylation of pheophytin a to pheophorbide a, (v) opening of the macrocycle to yield a red chlorophyll catabolite (RCC) and (vi) conversion of RCC to phyllobilins. This pathway converts potentially harmful chlorophyll into safe molecules of phyllobilins, which are stored in the central vacuole of terrestrial plants. The expression of chlorophyll-degrading enzymes is mediated by various transcription factors and influenced by light conditions, stress and plant hormones. Chlorophyll degradation is differently regulated in different organs and developmental stages of plants. The initiation of chlorophyll degradation induces the further expression of chlorophyll-degrading enzymes, resulting in the acceleration of chlorophyll degradation. Chlorophyll degradation was initially considered the last reaction in senescence; however, chlorophyll degradation plays crucial roles in enhancing senescence, degrading chlorophyll-protein complexes, forming photosystem II and maintaining seed quality. Therefore, controlling chlorophyll degradation has important agricultural applications.

Five Non-motile Dinotom Dinoflagellates of the Genus Dinothrix

Dinothrix paradoxa and Gymnodinium quadrilobatum are benthic dinoflagellates possessing diatom-derived tertiary plastids, so-called dinotoms. Due to the lack of available genetic information, their phylogenetic relationship remains unknown. In this study, sequencing of 18S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) and the rbcL gene from temporary cultures isolated from natural samples revealed that they are close relatives of another dinotom, Galeidinium rugatum. The morphologies of these three dinotoms differ significantly from each other; however, they share a distinctive life cycle, in which the non-motile cells without flagella are their dominant phase. Cell division occurs in this non-motile phase, while swimming cells only appear for several hours after being released from each daughter cell. Furthermore, we succeeded in isolating and establishing two novel dinotom strains, HG180 and HG204, which show a similar life cycle and are phylogenetically closely related to the aforementioned three species. The non-motile cells of strain HG180 are characterized by the possession of a hemispheroidal cell covered with numerous nodes, while those of the strain HG204 form aggregations consisting of spherical smooth-surface cells. Based on the similarity in life cycles and phylogenetic closeness, we conclude that all five species should belong to a single genus, Dinothrix, the oldest genus within this clade. We transferred Ga. rugatum and Gy. quadrilobatum to Dinothrix, and described strains HG180 and HG204 as Dinothrix phymatodea sp. nov. and Dinothrix pseudoparadoxa sp. nov.

Taming chlorophylls by early eukaryotes underpinned algal interactions and the diversification of the eukaryotes on the oxygenated Earth

Extant eukaryote ecology is primarily sustained by oxygenic photosynthesis, in which chlorophylls play essential roles. The exceptional photosensitivity of chlorophylls allows them to harvest solar energy for photosynthesis, but on the other hand, they also generate cytotoxic reactive oxygen species. A risk of such phototoxicity of the chlorophyll must become particularly prominent upon dynamic cellular interactions that potentially disrupt the mechanisms that are designed to quench photoexcited chlorophylls in the phototrophic cells. Extensive examination of a wide variety of phagotrophic, parasitic, and phototrophic microeukaryotes demonstrates that a catabolic process that converts chlorophylls into nonphotosensitive 13²,17³-cyclopheophorbide enols (CPEs) is phylogenetically ubiquitous among extant eukaryotes. The accumulation of CPEs is identified in phagotrophic algivores belonging to virtually all major eukaryotic assemblages with the exception of Archaeplastida, in which no algivorous species have been reported. In addition, accumulation of CPEs is revealed to be common among phototrophic microeukaryotes (i.e., microalgae) along with dismantling of their secondary chloroplasts. Thus, we infer that CPE-accumulating chlorophyll catabolism (CACC) primarily evolved among algivorous microeukaryotes to detoxify chlorophylls in an early stage of their evolution. Subsequently, it also underpinned photosynthetic endosymbiosis by securing close interactions with photosynthetic machinery containing abundant chlorophylls, which led to the acquisition of secondary chloroplasts. Our results strongly suggest that CACC, which allowed the consumption of oxygenic primary producers, ultimately permitted the successful radiation of the eukaryotes throughout and after the late Proterozoic global oxygenation.

Identification of Highly Divergent Diatom-Derived Chloroplasts in Dinoflagellates, Including a Description of Durinskia kwazulunatalensis sp. nov. (Peridiniales, Dinophyceae)

Dinoflagellates are known to possess chloroplasts of multiple origins derived from a red alga, a green alga, haptophytes, or diatoms. The monophyletic "dinotoms" harbor a chloroplast of diatom origin, but their chloroplasts are polyphyletic belonging to one of four genera: Chaetoceros, Cyclotella, Discostella, or Nitzschia. It has been speculated that serial replacement of diatom-derived chloroplasts by other diatoms has caused this diversity of chloroplasts. Although previous work suggested that the endosymbionts of Nitzschia origin might not be monophyletic, this has not been seriously investigated. To infer the number of replacements of diatom-derived chloroplasts in dinotoms, we analyzed the phylogenetic affinities of 14 species of dinotoms based on the endosymbiotic rbcL gene and SSU rDNA, and the host SSU rDNA. Resultant phylogenetic trees revealed that six species of Nitzschia were taken up by eight marine dinoflagellate species. Our phylogenies also indicate that four separate diatom species belonging to three genera were incorporated into the five freshwater dinotoms. Particular attention was paid to two crucially closely related species, Durinskia capensis and a novel species, D. kwazulunatalensis, because they possess distantly related Nitzschia species. This study clarified that any of a total of at least 11 diatom species in five genera are employed as an endosymbiont by 14 dinotoms, which infers a more frequent replacement of endosymbionts in the world of dinotoms than previously envisaged.

Pigment compositions are linked to the habitat types in dinoflagellates

Compared to planktonic species, there is little known about the ecology, physiology, and existence of benthic dinoflagellates living in sandy beach or seafloor environments. In a previous study, we discovered 13(2),17(3)-cyclopheophorbide a enol (cPPB-aE) from sand-dwelling benthic dinoflagellates. This enol had never been detected in phytoplankton despite the fact that it is a chlorophyll a catabolite. We speculated from this discovery that habitat selection might be linked to pigment compositions in dinoflagellates. To test the hypothesis of habitat selection linking to pigment compositions, we conducted extensive analysis of pigments with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for 40 species using 45 strains of dinoflagellates including three habitat types; sand-dwelling benthic forms, tidal pool inhabitants and planktonic species. The 40 dinoflagellates are also able to be distinguished into two types based on their chloroplast origins; red alga-derived secondary chloroplasts and diatom-derived tertiary ones. By plotting the pigments profiles onto three habitats, we noticed that twelve pigments including cPPB-aE were found to occur only in benthic sand-dwelling species of red alga-derived type. The similar tendency was also observed in dinoflagellates with diatom-derived chloroplasts, i.e. additional sixteen pigments including chl c 3 were found only in sand-dwelling forms. This is the first report of the occurrence of chl c 3 in dinoflagellates with diatom-derived chloroplasts. These results clarify that far greater diversity of pigments are produced by the dinoflagellates living in sand regardless of chloroplast types relative to those of planktonic and tidal pool forms. Dinoflagellates seem to produce a part of their pigments in response to their habitats.

Finding of 13(2) , 17(3) -cyclopheophorbide a enol as a degradation product of chlorophyll in shrunk zooxanthellae of the coral Montipora digitata

We examined the morphology and pigment composition of zooxanthellae in corals subjected to normal temperature (27°C) and thermal stress (32°C). We observed several normal and abnormal morphological types of zooxanthellar cells. Normal cells were intact and their chloroplasts were unbroken (healthy); abnormal cells were shrunken and had partially degraded or broken chloroplasts, or they were bleached and without chloroplasts. At 27°C, most healthy zooxanthellar cells were retained in the coral tissue, whereas shrunken zooxanthellae were expelled. Under thermal stress, the abundance of healthy zooxanthellae declined and the proportion of shrunken/abnormal cells increased in coral tissues. The rate of algal cell expulsion was reduced under thermal stress. Within the shrunken cells, we detected the presence of a chl-like pigment that is not ordinarily found in healthy zooxanthellae. Analysis of the absorption spectrum, absorption maxima, and retention time (by HPLC) indicated that this pigment was 13(2) , 17(3) -cyclopheophorbide a enol (cPPB-aE), which is frequently found in marine and lacustrine sediments, and in protozoans that graze on phytoplankton. The production of cPPB-aE in shrunken zooxanthellae suggests that the chls have been degraded to cPPB-aE, a compound that is not fluorescent. The lack of a fluorescence function precludes the formation of reactive oxygen species. We therefore consider the formation of cPPB-aE in shrunken zooxanthellae to be a mechanism for avoiding oxidative stress.