Engineering the cyanobacterial ATP-driven BCT1 bicarbonate transporter for functional targeting to C3 plant chloroplasts.

The ATP-driven bicarbonate transporter 1 (BCT1), a four-component complex in the cyanobacterial CO2-concentrating mechanism, could enhance photosynthetic CO2 assimilation in plant chloroplasts. However, directing its subunits (CmpA, CmpB, CmpC and CmpD) to three chloroplast sub-compartments is highly complex. Investigating BCT1 integration into Nicotiana benthamiana chloroplasts revealed promising targeting strategies using transit peptides from the intermembrane space protein Tic22 for correct CmpA targeting, while the transit peptide of the chloroplastic ABCD2 transporter effectively targeted CmpB to the inner envelope membrane. CmpC and CmpD were targeted to the stroma by RecA and recruited to the inner envelope membrane by CmpB. Despite successful targeting, expression of this complex in CO2-dependent Escherichia coli failed to demonstrate bicarbonate uptake. We then used rational design and directed evolution to generate new BCT1 forms that were constitutively active. Several mutants were recovered, including a CmpCD fusion. Selected mutants were further characterized and stably expressed in Arabidopsis thaliana, but the transformed plants did not have higher carbon assimilation rates or decreased CO2 compensation points in mature leaves. While further analysis is required, this directed evolution and heterologous testing approach presents potential for iterative modification and assessment of CO2-concentrating mechanism components to improve plant photosynthesis.

Cyanobacterial α-carboxysome carbonic anhydrase is allosterically regulated by the Rubisco substrate RuBP.

Cyanobacterial CO2 concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) sequester a globally consequential proportion of carbon into the biosphere. Proteinaceous microcompartments, called carboxysomes, play a critical role in CCM function, housing two enzymes to enhance CO2 fixation: carbonic anhydrase (CA) and Rubisco. Despite its importance, our current understanding of the carboxysomal CAs found in α-cyanobacteria, CsoSCA, remains limited, particularly regarding the regulation of its activity. Here, we present a structural and biochemical study of CsoSCA from the cyanobacterium Cyanobium sp. PCC7001. Our results show that the Cyanobium CsoSCA is allosterically activated by the Rubisco substrate ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate and forms a hexameric trimer of dimers. Comprehensive phylogenetic and mutational analyses are consistent with this regulation appearing exclusively in cyanobacterial α-carboxysome CAs. These findings clarify the biologically relevant oligomeric state of α-carboxysomal CAs and advance our understanding of the regulation of photosynthesis in this globally dominant lineage.

A carboxysome-based CO2 concentrating mechanism for C3 crop chloroplasts: advances and the road ahead.

The introduction of the carboxysome-based CO2 concentrating mechanism (CCM) into crop plants has been modelled to significantly increase crop yields. This projection serves as motivation for pursuing this strategy to contribute to global food security. The successful implementation of this engineering challenge is reliant upon the transfer of a microcompartment that encapsulates cyanobacterial Rubisco, known as the carboxysome, alongside active bicarbonate transporters. To date, significant progress has been achieved with respect to understanding various aspects of the cyanobacterial CCM, and more recently, different components of the carboxysome have been successfully introduced into plant chloroplasts. In this Perspective piece, we summarise recent findings and offer new research avenues that will accelerate research in this field to ultimately and successfully introduce the carboxysome into crop plants for increased crop yields.

The Chlamydomonas reinhardtii chloroplast envelope protein LCIA transports bicarbonate in planta.

LCIA (low CO2-inducible protein A) is a chloroplast envelope protein associated with the CO2-concentrating mechanism of the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. LCIA is postulated to be a HCO3- channel, but previous studies were unable to show that LCIA was actively transporting bicarbonate in planta. Therefore, LCIA activity was investigated more directly in two heterologous systems: an Escherichia coli mutant (DCAKO) lacking both native carbonic anhydrases and an Arabidopsis mutant (ßca5) missing the plastid carbonic anhydrase ßCA5. Neither DCAKO nor ßca5 can grow in ambient CO2 conditions, as they lack carbonic anhydrase-catalyzed production of the necessary HCO3- concentration for lipid and nucleic acid biosynthesis. Expression of LCIA restored growth in both systems in ambient CO2 conditions, which strongly suggests that LCIA is facilitating HCO3- uptake in each system. To our knowledge, this is the first direct evidence that LCIA moves HCO3- across membranes in bacteria and plants. Furthermore, the ßca5 plant bioassay used in this study is the first system for testing HCO3- transport activity in planta, an experimental breakthrough that will be valuable for future studies aimed at improving the photosynthetic efficiency of crop plants using components from algal CO2-concentrating mechanisms.

Towards engineering a hybrid carboxysome.

Carboxysomes are bacterial microcompartments, whose structural features enable the encapsulated Rubisco holoenzyme to operate in a high-CO2 environment. Consequently, Rubiscos housed within these compartments possess higher catalytic turnover rates relative to their plant counterparts. This particular enzymatic property has made the carboxysome, along with associated transporters, an attractive prospect to incorporate into plant chloroplasts to increase future crop yields. To date, two carboxysome types have been characterized, the α-type that has fewer shell components and the ß-type that houses a faster Rubisco. While research is underway to construct a native carboxysome in planta, work investigating the internal arrangement of carboxysomes has identified conserved Rubisco amino acid residues between the two carboxysome types which could be engineered to produce a new, hybrid carboxysome. In theory, this hybrid carboxysome would benefit from the simpler α-carboxysome shell architecture while simultaneously exploiting the higher Rubisco turnover rates in ß-carboxysomes. Here, we demonstrate in an Escherichia coli expression system, that the Thermosynechococcus elongatus Form IB Rubisco can be imperfectly incorporated into simplified Cyanobium α-carboxysome-like structures. While encapsulation of non-native cargo can be achieved, T. elongatus Form IB Rubisco does not interact with the Cyanobium carbonic anhydrase, a core requirement for proper carboxysome functionality. Together, these results suggest a way forward to hybrid carboxysome formation.

A cross-scale analysis to understand and quantify the effects of photosynthetic enhancement on crop growth and yield across environments.

Photosynthetic manipulation provides new opportunities for enhancing crop yield. However, understanding and quantifying the importance of individual and multiple manipulations on the seasonal biomass growth and yield performance of target crops across variable production environments is limited. Using a state-of-the-art cross-scale model in the APSIM platform we predicted the impact of altering photosynthesis on the enzyme-limited (Ac ) and electron transport-limited (Aj ) rates, seasonal dynamics in canopy photosynthesis, biomass growth, and yield formation via large multiyear-by-location crop growth simulations. A broad list of promising strategies to improve photosynthesis for C3 wheat and C4 sorghum were simulated. In the top decile of seasonal outcomes, yield gains were predicted to be modest, ranging between 0% and 8%, depending on the manipulation and crop type. We report how photosynthetic enhancement can affect the timing and severity of water and nitrogen stress on the growing crop, resulting in nonintuitive seasonal crop dynamics and yield outcomes. We predicted that strategies enhancing Ac alone generate more consistent but smaller yield gains across all water and nitrogen environments, Aj enhancement alone generates larger gains but is undesirable in more marginal environments. Large increases in both Ac and Aj generate the highest gains across all environments. Yield outcomes of the tested manipulation strategies were predicted and compared for realistic Australian wheat and sorghum production. This study uniquely unpacks complex cross-scale interactions between photosynthesis and seasonal crop dynamics and improves understanding and quantification of the potential impact of photosynthesis traits (or lack of it) for crop improvement research.

Modeling and mutagenesis of amino acid residues critical for CO2 hydration by specialized NDH-1 complexes in cyanobacteria.

The uptake of inorganic carbon in cyanobacteria is facilitated by an energetically intensive CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM). This includes specialized Type-1 NDH complexes that function to couple photosynthetic redox energy to CO2 hydration forming the bicarbonate that accumulates to high cytoplasmic concentrations during the operation of the CCM, required for effective carbon fixation. Here we used a Synechococcus PCC7942 expression system to investigate the role of conserved histidine and cysteine residues in the CupB (also designated, ChpX) protein, which has been hypothesized to participate in a vectoral CO2 hydration reaction near the interface between CupB protein and the proton-pumping subunits of the NDH-1 complex. A homology model has been constructed and most of the targeted conserved residues are in the vicinity of a Zn ion modeled to form the catalytic site of deprotonation and CO2 hydration. Growth and CO2 uptake assays show that the most severe defects in activity among the targeted residues are due to a substitution of the predicted Zn ligand, CupB-His86. Mutations at other sites produced intermediate effects. Proteomic analysis revealed that some amino acid substitution mutations of CupB caused the induction of bicarbonate uptake proteins to a greater extent than complete deletion of CupB, despite growth under CO2-enriched conditions. The results are discussed in terms of hypotheses on the catalytic function of this unusual enzyme.

Incorporation of Functional Rubisco Activases into Engineered Carboxysomes to Enhance Carbon Fixation.

The carboxysome is a versatile paradigm of prokaryotic organelles and is a proteinaceous self-assembling microcompartment that plays essential roles in carbon fixation in all cyanobacteria and some chemoautotrophs. The carboxysome encapsulates the central CO2-fixing enzyme, ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco), using a polyhedral protein shell that is selectively permeable to specific metabolites in favor of Rubisco carboxylation. There is tremendous interest in repurposing carboxysomes to boost carbon fixation in heterologous organisms. Here, we develop the design and engineering of α-carboxysomes by coexpressing the Rubisco activase components CbbQ and CbbO with α-carboxysomes in Escherichia coli. Our results show that CbbQ and CbbO could assemble into the reconstituted α-carboxysome as intrinsic components. Incorporation of both CbbQ and CbbO within the carboxysome promotes activation of Rubisco and enhances the CO2-fixation activities of recombinant carboxysomes. We also show that the structural composition of these carboxysomes could be modified in different expression systems, representing the plasticity of the carboxysome architecture. In translational terms, our study informs strategies for engineering and modulating carboxysomes in diverse biotechnological applications.

Engineered Accumulation of Bicarbonate in Plant Chloroplasts: Known Knowns and Known Unknowns.

Heterologous synthesis of a biophysical CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM) in plant chloroplasts offers significant potential to improve the photosynthetic efficiency of C3 plants and could translate into substantial increases in crop yield. In organisms utilizing a biophysical CCM, this mechanism efficiently surrounds a high turnover rate Rubisco with elevated CO2 concentrations to maximize carboxylation rates. A critical feature of both native biophysical CCMs and one engineered into a C3 plant chloroplast is functional bicarbonate (HCO3 -) transporters and vectorial CO2-to-HCO3 - converters. Engineering strategies aim to locate these transporters and conversion systems to the C3 chloroplast, enabling elevation of HCO3 - concentrations within the chloroplast stroma. Several CCM components have been identified in proteobacteria, cyanobacteria, and microalgae as likely candidates for this approach, yet their successful functional expression in C3 plant chloroplasts remains elusive. Here, we discuss the challenges in expressing and regulating functional HCO3 - transporter, and CO2-to-HCO3 - converter candidates in chloroplast membranes as an essential step in engineering a biophysical CCM within plant chloroplasts. We highlight the broad technical and physiological concerns which must be considered in proposed engineering strategies, and present our current status of both knowledge and knowledge-gaps which will affect successful engineering outcomes.

Rubisco proton production can drive the elevation of CO2 within condensates and carboxysomes.

Membraneless organelles containing the enzyme ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) are a common feature of organisms utilizing CO2 concentrating mechanisms to enhance photosynthetic carbon acquisition. In cyanobacteria and proteobacteria, the Rubisco condensate is encapsulated in a proteinaceous shell, collectively termed a carboxysome, while some algae and hornworts have evolved Rubisco condensates known as pyrenoids. In both cases, CO2 fixation is enhanced compared with the free enzyme. Previous mathematical models have attributed the improved function of carboxysomes to the generation of elevated CO2 within the organelle via a colocalized carbonic anhydrase (CA) and inwardly diffusing HCO3-, which have accumulated in the cytoplasm via dedicated transporters. Here, we present a concept in which we consider the net of two protons produced in every Rubisco carboxylase reaction. We evaluate this in a reaction-diffusion compartment model to investigate functional advantages these protons may provide Rubisco condensates and carboxysomes, prior to the evolution of HCO3- accumulation. Our model highlights that diffusional resistance to reaction species within a condensate allows Rubisco-derived protons to drive the conversion of HCO3- to CO2 via colocalized CA, enhancing both condensate [CO2] and Rubisco rate. Protonation of Rubisco substrate (RuBP) and product (phosphoglycerate) plays an important role in modulating internal pH and CO2 generation. Application of the model to putative evolutionary ancestors, prior to contemporary cellular HCO3- accumulation, revealed photosynthetic enhancements along a logical sequence of advancements, via Rubisco condensation, to fully formed carboxysomes. Our model suggests that evolution of Rubisco condensation could be favored under low CO2 and low light environments.

Structural Basis for the Allosteric Regulation of the SbtA Bicarbonate Transporter by the PII-like Protein, SbtB, from Cyanobium sp. PCC7001.

Cyanobacteria have evolved a suite of enzymes and inorganic carbon (Ci) transporters that improve photosynthetic performance by increasing the localized concentration of CO2 around the primary CO2-fixating enzyme, Rubisco. This CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM) is highly regulated, responds to illumination/darkness cycles, and allows cyanobacteria to thrive under limiting Ci conditions. While the transcriptional control of CCM activity is well understood, less is known about how regulatory proteins might allosterically regulate Ci transporters in response to changing conditions. Cyanobacterial sodium-dependent bicarbonate transporters (SbtAs) are inhibited by PII-like regulatory proteins (SbtBs), with the inhibitory effect being modulated by adenylnucleotides. Here, we used isothermal titration calorimetry to show that SbtB from Cyanobium sp. PCC7001 (SbtB7001) binds AMP, ADP, cAMP, and ATP with micromolar-range affinities. X-ray crystal structures of apo and nucleotide-bound SbtB7001 revealed that while AMP, ADP, and cAMP have little effect on the SbtB7001 structure, binding of ATP stabilizes the otherwise flexible T-loop, and that the flexible C-terminal C-loop adopts several distinct conformations. We also show that ATP binding affinity is increased 10-fold in the presence of Ca2+, and we present an X-ray crystal structure of Ca2+ATP:SbtB7001 that shows how this metal ion facilitates additional stabilizing interactions with the apex of the T-loop. We propose that the Ca2+ATP-induced conformational change observed in SbtB7001 is important for allosteric regulation of SbtA activity by SbtB and is consistent with changing adenylnucleotide levels in illumination/darkness cycles.

Carboxysome encapsulation of the CO2-fixing enzyme Rubisco in tobacco chloroplasts.

A long-term strategy to enhance global crop photosynthesis and yield involves the introduction of cyanobacterial CO2-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) into plant chloroplasts. Cyanobacterial CCMs enable relatively rapid CO2 fixation by elevating intracellular inorganic carbon as bicarbonate, then concentrating it as CO2 around the enzyme Rubisco in specialized protein micro-compartments called carboxysomes. To date, chloroplastic expression of carboxysomes has been elusive, requiring coordinated expression of almost a dozen proteins. Here we successfully produce simplified carboxysomes, isometric with those of the source organism Cyanobium, within tobacco chloroplasts. We replace the endogenous Rubisco large subunit gene with cyanobacterial Form-1A Rubisco large and small subunit genes, along with genes for two key α-carboxysome structural proteins. This minimal gene set produces carboxysomes, which encapsulate the introduced Rubisco and enable autotrophic growth at elevated CO2. This result demonstrates the formation of α-carboxysomes from a reduced gene set, informing the step-wise construction of fully functional α-carboxysomes in chloroplasts.

Measuring CO2 and HCO3- permeabilities of isolated chloroplasts using a MIMS-18O approach.

To support photosynthetic CO2 fixation by Rubisco, the chloroplast must be fed with inorganic carbon in the form of CO2 or bicarbonate. However, the mechanisms allowing the rapid passage of this gas and this charged molecule through the bounding membranes of the chloroplast envelope are not yet completely elucidated. We describe here a method allowing us to measure the permeability of these two molecules through the chloroplast envelope using a membrane inlet mass spectrometer and 18O-labelled inorganic carbon. We established that the internal stromal carbonic anhydrase activity is not limiting for this technique, and precisely measured the chloroplast surface area and permeability values for CO2 and bicarbonate. This was performed on chloroplasts from several plant species, with values ranging from 2.3 × 10-4 m s-1 to 8 × 10-4 m s-1 permeability for CO2 and 1 × 10-8 m s-1 for bicarbonate. We were able to apply our method to chloroplasts from an Arabidopsis aquaporin mutant, and this showed that CO2 permeability was reduced 50% in the mutant compared with the wild-type reference.

Identification and characterization of a solute carrier, CIA8, involved in inorganic carbon acclimation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.

The supply of inorganic carbon (Ci) at the site of fixation by Rubisco is a key parameter for efficient CO2 fixation in aquatic organisms including the green alga, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cells, when grown on limiting CO2, have a CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM) that functions to concentrate CO2 at the site of Rubisco. Proteins thought to be involved in inorganic carbon uptake have been identified and localized to the plasma membrane or chloroplast envelope. However, current CCM models suggest that additional molecular components are involved in Ci uptake. In this study, the gene Cia8 was identified in an insertional mutagenesis screen and characterized. The protein encoded by Cia8 belongs to the sodium bile acid symporter subfamily. Transcript levels for this gene were significantly up-regulated when the cells were grown on low CO2. The cia8 mutant exhibited reduced growth and reduced affinity for Ci when grown in limiting CO2 conditions. Prediction programs localize this protein to the chloroplast. Ci uptake and the photosynthetic rate, particularly at high external pH, were reduced in the mutant. The results are consistent with the model that CIA8 is involved in Ci uptake in C. reinhardtii.

Progress and challenges of engineering a biophysical CO2-concentrating mechanism into higher plants.

Growth and productivity in important crop plants is limited by the inefficiencies of the C3 photosynthetic pathway. Introducing CO2-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) into C3 plants could overcome these limitations and lead to increased yields. Many unicellular microautotrophs, such as cyanobacteria and green algae, possess highly efficient biophysical CCMs that increase CO2 concentrations around the primary carboxylase enzyme, Rubisco, to enhance CO2 assimilation rates. Algal and cyanobacterial CCMs utilize distinct molecular components, but share several functional commonalities. Here we outline the recent progress and current challenges of engineering biophysical CCMs into C3 plants. We review the predicted requirements for a functional biophysical CCM based on current knowledge of cyanobacterial and algal CCMs, the molecular engineering tools and research pipelines required to translate our theoretical knowledge into practice, and the current challenges to achieving these goals.

Redirecting the Cyanobacterial Bicarbonate Transporters BicA and SbtA to the Chloroplast Envelope: Soluble and Membrane Cargos Need Different Chloroplast Targeting Signals in Plants.

Most major crops used for human consumption are C3 plants, which yields are limited by photosynthetic inefficiency. To circumvent this, it has been proposed to implement the cyanobacterial CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM), principally consisting of bicarbonate transporters and carboxysomes, into plant chloroplasts. As it is currently not possible to recover homoplasmic transplastomic monocots, foreign genes must be introduced in these plants via nuclear transformation. Consequently, it is paramount to ensure that resulting proteins reach the appropriate sub-cellular compartment, which for cyanobacterial transporters BicA and SbtA, is the chloroplast inner-envelope membrane (IEM). At present, targeting signals to redirect large transmembrane proteins from non-chloroplastic organisms to plant chloroplast envelopes are unknown. The goal of this study was to identify such signals, using agrobacteria-mediated transient expression and confocal microscopy to determine the sub-cellular localization of ∼37 GFP-tagged chimeras. Initially, fragments of chloroplast proteins known to target soluble cargos to the stroma were tested for their ability to redirect BicA, but they proved ineffective. Next, different N-terminal regions from Arabidopsis IEM transporters were tested. We demonstrated that the N-terminus of AtHP59, AtPLGG1 or AtNTT1 (92-115 amino acids), containing a cleavable chloroplast transit peptide (cTP) and a membrane protein leader (MPL), was sufficient to redirect BicA or SbtA to the chloroplast envelope. This constitutes the first evidence that nuclear-encoded transmembrane proteins from non-chloroplastic organisms can be targeted to the envelope of plant chloroplasts; a finding which represents an important advance in chloroplast engineering by opening up the door to further manipulation of the chloroplastic envelope.

Cyanobacterial CO2-concentrating mechanism components: function and prospects for plant metabolic engineering.

Global population growth is projected to outpace plant-breeding improvements in major crop yields within decades. To ensure future food security, multiple creative efforts seek to overcome limitations to crop yield. Perhaps the greatest limitation to increased crop yield is photosynthetic inefficiency, particularly in C3 crop plants. Recently, great strides have been made toward crop improvement by researchers seeking to introduce the cyanobacterial CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM) into plant chloroplasts. This strategy recognises the C3 chloroplast as lacking a CCM, and being a primordial cyanobacterium at its essence. Hence the collection of solute transporters, enzymes, and physical structures that make cyanobacterial CO2-fixation so efficient are viewed as a natural source of genetic material for C3 chloroplast improvement. Also we highlight recent outstanding research aimed toward the goal of introducing a cyanobacterial CCM into C3 chloroplasts and consider future research directions.

Characterisation of cyanobacterial bicarbonate transporters in E. coli shows that SbtA homologs are functional in this heterologous expression system.

Cyanobacterial HCO3(-) transporters BCT1, SbtA and BicA are important components of cyanobacterial CO2-concentration mechanisms. They also show potential in applications aimed at improving photosynthetic rates and yield when expressed in the chloroplasts of C3 crop species. The present study investigated the feasibility of using Escherichia coli to assess function of a range of SbtA and BicA transporters in a heterologous expression system, ultimately for selection of transporters suitable for chloroplast expression. Here, we demonstrate that six ß-forms of SbtA are active in E. coli, although other tested bicarbonate transporters were inactive. The sbtA clones were derived from Synechococcus sp. WH5701, Cyanobium sp. PCC7001, Cyanobium sp. PCC6307, Synechococcus elongatus PCC7942, Synechocystis sp. PCC6803, and Synechococcus sp. PCC7002. The six SbtA homologs varied in bicarbonate uptake kinetics and sodium requirements in E. coli. In particular, SbtA from PCC7001 showed the lowest uptake affinity and highest flux rate and was capable of increasing the internal inorganic carbon pool by more than 8 mM relative to controls lacking transporters. Importantly, we were able to show that the SbtB protein (encoded by a companion gene near sbtA) binds to SbtA and suppresses bicarbonate uptake function of SbtA in E. coli, suggesting a role in post-translational regulation of SbtA, possibly as an inhibitor in the dark. This study established E. coli as a heterologous expression and analysis system for HCO3(-) transporters from cyanobacteria, and identified several SbtA transporters as useful for expression in the chloroplast inner envelope membranes of higher plants.