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Molecular Signaling Events in Algae in Response to Abiotic Factors...
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Molecular Signaling Events in Algae in Response to Abiotic Factors and Biotic Interactions

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Response to Abiotic Stress and Climate Change".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2024) | Viewed by 11055

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Maria Mittag

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Matthias Schleiden Institute of Genetics, Bioinformatics and Molecular Botany, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany
Interests: microalgae; algal-microbial interactions; circadian clocks; photoreceptors; temperature sensing

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Algae, including microscopic microalgae and macroalgal kelps, are important for carbon dioxide fixation and are at the bottom of food webs. Their fitness depends on abiotic factors such as light, temperature and nutrients. In addition, interactions with other organisms strongly influence their growth rates in a positive or negative manner (e.g., mutualism, antagonism). In recent years, we gained knowledge about how biotic and abiotic factors are perceived by sophisticated algal receptors and the signaling cascade events that are initiated thereafter. For example, novel types of photoreceptors have been found in algae that are absent in land plants. Despite extensive studies on selected model algae under laboratory conditions, we are only starting to understand how algae react under natural conditions. This Special Issue of Plants aims to provide an overview of our current knowledge on molecular receptors, signaling components and pathways that are triggered once algae perceive information about abiotic factors or interact with other (micro-)organisms.

Prof. Dr. Maria Mittag
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • algal–microbial interactions
  • algal viruses
  • Ca2+ signaling
  • freshwater algae
  • light, nutrients
  • marine algae
  • photoreceptors
  • temperature
  • temperature sensing
  • terrestrial algae

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 1314 KiB  
Article
The Impact of Temperature on Host–Parasite Interactions and Metabolomic Profiles in the Marine Diatom Coscinodiscus granii
by Ruchicka Annie O’Niel, Georg Pohnert and Marine Vallet
Plants 2024, 13(23), 3415; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13233415 - 5 Dec 2024
Viewed by 1073
Abstract
Diatoms are single-celled photosynthetic eukaryotes responsible for CO2 fixation and primary production in aquatic ecosystems. The cosmopolitan marine diatom Coscinodiscus granii can form seasonal blooms in coastal areas and interact with various microorganisms, including the parasitic oomycete Lagenisma coscinodisci. This unicellular [...] Read more.
Diatoms are single-celled photosynthetic eukaryotes responsible for CO2 fixation and primary production in aquatic ecosystems. The cosmopolitan marine diatom Coscinodiscus granii can form seasonal blooms in coastal areas and interact with various microorganisms, including the parasitic oomycete Lagenisma coscinodisci. This unicellular eukaryote is mainly present in the northern hemisphere as an obligate parasite of the genus Coscinodiscus. Understanding the interplay of abiotic factors such as temperature and biotic factors like parasitism on algal physiology is crucial as it dictates plankton community composition and is especially relevant during environmental changes and warming events. This study investigates the impact of two temperatures, 13 °C and 25 °C, on Coscinodiscus granii under laboratory conditions. A decreased infection rate of the parasite was observed at the elevated temperature. Comparative metabolomic analysis using UHPLC-HRMS revealed that temperature and parasitism significantly affect the algal cell metabolome. Abundances of metabolites related to sulfur metabolism, including cysteinoleic acid and dimethylsulfoniopropionate, as well as molecules linked to fatty acid metabolism, e.g., carnitine, acetylcarnitine, and eicosapentanoic acid, significantly increase in cells grown at a higher temperature, suggesting the enhanced rate of metabolism of host cells as the temperature rises. Our study reveals how temperature-induced metabolic changes can influence host–parasite dynamics in a changing environment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Signaling Events in Algae in Response to Abiotic Factors and Biotic Interactions)
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17 pages, 1941 KiB  
Article
A Knockout of the Photoreceptor PtAureo1a Results in Altered Diel Expression of Diatom Clock Components
by Shvaita Madhuri, Bernard Lepetit, Alexander Helmut Fürst and Peter G. Kroth
Plants 2024, 13(11), 1465; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13111465 - 25 May 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1345
Abstract
Plants and algae use light not only for driving photosynthesis but also to sense environmental cues and to adjust their circadian clocks via photoreceptors. Aureochromes are blue-light-dependent photoreceptors that also function as transcription factors, possessing both a LOV and a bZIP domain. Aureochromes [...] Read more.
Plants and algae use light not only for driving photosynthesis but also to sense environmental cues and to adjust their circadian clocks via photoreceptors. Aureochromes are blue-light-dependent photoreceptors that also function as transcription factors, possessing both a LOV and a bZIP domain. Aureochromes so far have only been detected in Stramenopile algae, which include the diatoms. Four paralogues of aureochromes have been identified in the pennate model diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum: PtAureo1a, 1b, 1c, and 2. While it was shown recently that diatoms have a diel rhythm, the molecular mechanisms and components regulating it are still largely unknown. Diel gene expression analyses of wild-type P. tricornutum, a PtAureo1a knockout strain, and the respective PtAureo1 complemented line revealed that all four aureochromes have a different diel regulation and that PtAureo1a has a strong co-regulatory influence on its own transcription, as well as on that of other genes encoding different blue-light photoreceptors (CPF1, 2 and 4), proteins involved in photoprotection (Lhcx1), and specific bHLH transcription factors (RITMO1). Some of these genes completely lost their circadian expression in the PtAureo1a KO mutant. Our results suggest a major involvement of aureochromes in the molecular clock of diatoms. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Signaling Events in Algae in Response to Abiotic Factors and Biotic Interactions)
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22 pages, 4327 KiB  
Article
Channels of Evolution: Unveiling Evolutionary Patterns in Diatom Ca2+ Signalling
by Eleanor A. Murphy, Friedrich H. Kleiner, Katherine E. Helliwell and Glen L. Wheeler
Plants 2024, 13(9), 1207; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13091207 - 26 Apr 2024
Viewed by 2279
Abstract
Diatoms are important primary producers in marine and freshwater environments, but little is known about the signalling mechanisms they use to detect changes in their environment. All eukaryotic organisms use Ca2+ signalling to perceive and respond to environmental stimuli, employing a range [...] Read more.
Diatoms are important primary producers in marine and freshwater environments, but little is known about the signalling mechanisms they use to detect changes in their environment. All eukaryotic organisms use Ca2+ signalling to perceive and respond to environmental stimuli, employing a range of Ca2+-permeable ion channels to facilitate the movement of Ca2+ across cellular membranes. We investigated the distribution of different families of Ca2+ channels in diatom genomes, with comparison to other members of the stramenopile lineage. The four-domain voltage-gated Ca2+ channels (Cav) are present in some centric diatoms but almost completely absent in pennate diatoms, whereas single-domain voltage-gated EukCatA channels were found in all diatoms. Glutamate receptors (GLRs) and pentameric ligand-gated ion channels (pLGICs) also appear to have been lost in several pennate species. Transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are present in all diatoms, but have not undergone the significant expansion seen in brown algae. All diatom species analysed lacked the mitochondrial uniporter (MCU), a highly conserved channel type found in many eukaryotes, including several stramenopile lineages. These results highlight the unique Ca2+-signalling toolkit of diatoms and indicate that evolutionary gains or losses of different Ca2+ channels may contribute to differences in cellular-signalling mechanisms between species. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Signaling Events in Algae in Response to Abiotic Factors and Biotic Interactions)
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Review

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37 pages, 3352 KiB  
Review
Photosynthetic Electron Flows and Networks of Metabolite Trafficking to Sustain Metabolism in Photosynthetic Systems
by Neda Fakhimi and Arthur R. Grossman
Plants 2024, 13(21), 3015; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13213015 - 28 Oct 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1792
Abstract
Photosynthetic eukaryotes have metabolic pathways that occur in distinct subcellular compartments. However, because metabolites synthesized in one compartment, including fixed carbon compounds and reductant generated by photosynthetic electron flows, may be integral to processes in other compartments, the cells must efficiently move metabolites [...] Read more.
Photosynthetic eukaryotes have metabolic pathways that occur in distinct subcellular compartments. However, because metabolites synthesized in one compartment, including fixed carbon compounds and reductant generated by photosynthetic electron flows, may be integral to processes in other compartments, the cells must efficiently move metabolites among the different compartments. This review examines the various photosynthetic electron flows used to generate ATP and fixed carbon and the trafficking of metabolites in the green alga Chlamydomomas reinhardtii; information on other algae and plants is provided to add depth and nuance to the discussion. We emphasized the trafficking of metabolites across the envelope membranes of the two energy powerhouse organelles of the cell, the chloroplast and mitochondrion, the nature and roles of the major mobile metabolites that move among these compartments, and the specific or presumed transporters involved in that trafficking. These transporters include sugar-phosphate (sugar-P)/inorganic phosphate (Pi) transporters and dicarboxylate transporters, although, in many cases, we know little about the substrate specificities of these transporters, how their activities are regulated/coordinated, compensatory responses among transporters when specific transporters are compromised, associations between transporters and other cellular proteins, and the possibilities for forming specific ‘megacomplexes’ involving interactions between enzymes of central metabolism with specific transport proteins. Finally, we discuss metabolite trafficking associated with specific biological processes that occur under various environmental conditions to help to maintain the cell’s fitness. These processes include C4 metabolism in plants and the carbon concentrating mechanism, photorespiration, and fermentation metabolism in algae. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Signaling Events in Algae in Response to Abiotic Factors and Biotic Interactions)
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23 pages, 1712 KiB  
Review
Exchange or Eliminate: The Secrets of Algal-Bacterial Relationships
by Bertille Burgunter-Delamare, Prateek Shetty, Trang Vuong and Maria Mittag
Plants 2024, 13(6), 829; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13060829 - 13 Mar 2024
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3886
Abstract
Algae and bacteria have co-occurred and coevolved in common habitats for hundreds of millions of years, fostering specific associations and interactions such as mutualism or antagonism. These interactions are shaped through exchanges of primary and secondary metabolites provided by one of the partners. [...] Read more.
Algae and bacteria have co-occurred and coevolved in common habitats for hundreds of millions of years, fostering specific associations and interactions such as mutualism or antagonism. These interactions are shaped through exchanges of primary and secondary metabolites provided by one of the partners. Metabolites, such as N-sources or vitamins, can be beneficial to the partner and they may be assimilated through chemotaxis towards the partner producing these metabolites. Other metabolites, especially many natural products synthesized by bacteria, can act as toxins and damage or kill the partner. For instance, the green microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii establishes a mutualistic partnership with a Methylobacterium, in stark contrast to its antagonistic relationship with the toxin producing Pseudomonas protegens. In other cases, as with a coccolithophore haptophyte alga and a Phaeobacter bacterium, the same alga and bacterium can even be subject to both processes, depending on the secreted bacterial and algal metabolites. Some bacteria also influence algal morphology by producing specific metabolites and micronutrients, as is observed in some macroalgae. This review focuses on algal-bacterial interactions with micro- and macroalgal models from marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments and summarizes the advances in the field. It also highlights the effects of temperature on these interactions as it is presently known. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Signaling Events in Algae in Response to Abiotic Factors and Biotic Interactions)
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