Extracellular Polysaccharide Production in a Scytonemin-Deficient Mutant of Nostoc punctiforme Under UVA and Oxidative Stress

Some cyanobacteria can protect themselves from ultraviolet radiation by producing sunscreen pigments. In particular, the sheath pigment scytonemin protects cells against long-wavelength UVA radiation and is only found in cyanobacteria which are capable of extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) production. The presence of a putative glycosyltransferase encoded within the scytonemin gene cluster, along with the localization of scytonemin and EPS to the extracellular sheath, prompted us to investigate the relationship between scytonemin and EPS production under UVA stress. In this study, it was hypothesized that there would be a relationship between the biosynthesis of scytonemin and EPS under both UVA and oxidative stress, since the latter is a by-product of UVA radiation. EPS production was measured following exposure of wild-type Nostoc punctiforme and the non-scytonemin-producing strain SCY59 to UVA and oxidative stress. Under UVA, SCY59 produced significantly more EPS than the unstressed controls and the wild type, while both strains produced more EPS under oxidative stress compared to the controls. The results suggest that EPS secretion occurs in response to the oxidative stress by-product of UVA rather than as a direct response to UVA radiation.