Deciphering Patterns of Adaptation and Acclimation in the Transcriptome of Phaeocystis antarctica to Changing Iron Conditions

© 2020 The Authors. Journal of Phycology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Phycological Society of America The haptophyte Phaeocystis antarctica is endemic to the Southern Ocean, where iron supply is sporadic and its availability limits primary production. In iron fertilization exper...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Phycology
Main Authors: Rizkallah, Mariam R., Frickenhaus, Stephan, Trimborn, Scarlett, Harms, Lars, Moustafa, Ahmed, Benes, Vladimir, Gäbler-Schwarz, Steffi, Beszteri, Sara
Format: Text
Language:unknown
Published: AUC Knowledge Fountain 2020
Subjects:
Antarctic regions
haptophyta
iron
photosynthesis
phytoplankton
transcriptome
Antarctic
Southern Ocean
Antarc*
Antarctica
Online Access:https://fount.aucegypt.edu/faculty_journal_articles/1486
https://doi.org/10.1111/jpy.12979
Description
Summary:© 2020 The Authors. Journal of Phycology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Phycological Society of America The haptophyte Phaeocystis antarctica is endemic to the Southern Ocean, where iron supply is sporadic and its availability limits primary production. In iron fertilization experiments, P. antarctica showed a prompt and steady increase in cell abundance compared to heavily silicified diatoms along with enhanced colony formation. Here we utilized a transcriptomic approach to investigate molecular responses to alleviation of iron limitation in P. antarctica. We analyzed the transcriptomic response before and after (14 h, 24 h and 72 h) iron addition to a low-iron acclimated culture. After iron addition, we observed indicators of a quick reorganization of cellular energetics, from carbohydrate catabolism and mitochondrial energy production to anabolism. In addition to typical substitution responses from an iron-economic toward an iron-sufficient state for flavodoxin (ferredoxin) and plastocyanin (cytochrome c6), we found other genes utilizing the same strategy involved in nitrogen assimilation and fatty acid desaturation. Our results shed light on a number of adaptive mechanisms that P. antarctica uses under low iron, including the utilization of a Cu-dependent ferric reductase system and indication of mixotrophic growth. The gene expression patterns underpin P. antarctica as a quick responder to iron addition.

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