Journal
JOURNAL OF PHYCOLOGY
Volume 46, Issue 1, Pages 123-134Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/j.1529-8817.2009.00793.x
Keywords
diatoms; gene expression; LHCF phylogeny; light-harvesting complex fucoxanthin-binding proteins (LHCF); light-harvesting complex proteins (LHCP); protein expression
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Funding
- NERC [NER/A/S/2003/00441]
- Leverhulme Foundation International Collaborative [F/00 213/M]
- NSF [BIO-OCE 0723908]
- Natural Environment Research Council [NER/A/S/2003/00441] Funding Source: researchfish
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Emiliania huxleyi (Lohmann) W. W. Hay et H. Mohler is the most abundant marine unicellular coccolithophore in the ocean and belongs to the group of organisms that have chl c and fucoxanthins as pigments in the photosynthetic light-harvesting complexes (LHCs). In this study, we report on the isolation and characterization of the mRNAs encoding six light-harvesting complex fucoxanthin-binding proteins (LHCFs) from E. huxleyi. Phylogenetic analysis of these sequences has revealed that they form three distinct subgroups: haptophyte, diatom/haptophyte, and LI818-like. Expression analysis of the six Lhcf genes showed a clear down-regulation at the transcriptional level when the cultures were grown in high light (300 mu mol . m(-2) . s(-1)) when compared to equivalent samples in low light (30 mu mol . m(-2) . s(-1)). In contrast, little impact on transcript levels was observed between cultures grown in either low CO2 (180 ppm) or high CO2 (750 ppm) at either light intensities. Using polyclonal antibodies to three of the LHCFs revealed a down-regulation in protein levels in response to increased light availability with a minor increase in two of the LHCFs in elevated CO2. This study has provided an insight into the diversity of LHCFs and how changes in the levels of these proteins, together with altered pigment composition, may contribute to the flexible response of E. huxleyi to changes in the light environment.
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