Calcium control of the hydraulic resistance in cells of Chara corallina.

The hydraulic resistance (the reciprocal of the hydraulic conductivity Lp) Lp-1 was measured in cells of Chara corallina by the method of transcellular osmosis. Treatment of cells with 100 mM KCl decreased Lp-1 significantly. Subsequent treatment of the cells with 70 mM CaCl2 recovered the decreased Lp-1 to the original value. To know whether K+ or Ca2+/Mg2+ acts on the cell wall and/or the membrane, the hydraulic resistances of the cell wall (Lpw-1) and that of the membrane (Lpm-1) were determined in one and the same cell. For this, a pair of cells (twin cells) were made from an internodal cell, one used for measurement of Lp-1 and the other used for the measurement of Lpw-1. From Lp-1 and Lpw-1, Lpm-1 was calculated. Both Lp-1 and Lpw-1 were decreased by K+, while Lpm-1 was not affected by K+. The same result was obtained with 5 mM EGTA. Lpw-1 was decreased more than it was by KCl but Lpm-1 remained constant after EGTA treatment. The recovery of the K+-decreased Lp-1 with Ca2+ can be explained exclusively by the recovery of Lpw-1 with Ca2+. The Ca2+ recovery of Lpw-1 was observed in the intact cell wall but not in the cell wall tube isolated from an internodal cell. The different response to Ca2+ between the intact cell wall and the isolated cell wall was discussed in relation to the tension in the cell wall which may be an important factor for the ionic regulation of hydraulic conductivity.

Cyclosis-mediated intercellular transmission of photosynthetic metabolites in Chara revealed with chlorophyll microfluorometry.

Symplastic interconnections of plant cells via perforations in adjoining cell walls (plasmodesmata) enable long-distance transport of photoassimilates and signaling substances required for growth and development. The pathways and features of intercellular movement of assimilates are often examined with fluorescent tracers whose molecular dimensions are similar to natural metabolites produced in photosynthesis. Chlorophyll fluorescence was recently found to be a sensitive noninvasive indicator of long-distance intracellular transport of physiologically produced photometabolites in characean internodes. The present work shows that the chlorophyll microfluorometry has a potential for studying the cell-to-cell transport of reducing substances released by local illumination of one internode and detected as the fluorescence increase in the neighbor internode. The method provides temporal resolution in the time frame of seconds and can be used to evaluate permeability of plasmodesmata to natural components released by illuminated chloroplasts. The results show that approximately one third of the amount of photometabolites released into the streaming cytoplasm during a 30-s pulse of local light permeates across the nodal complex with the characteristic time of ~ 10 s. The intercellular transport was highly sensitive to moderate elevations of osmolarity in the bath solution (150 mM sorbitol), which contrasts to the view that only transnodal gradients in osmolarity (and internal hydrostatic pressure) have an appreciable influence on plasmodesmal conductance. The inhibition of cell-to-cell transport was reversible and specific; the sorbitol addition had no influence on photosynthetic electron transport and the velocity of cytoplasmic streaming. The conductance of transcellular pores increased in the presence of the actin inhibitor cytochalasin D but the cell-to-cell transport was eventually suppressed due to the deceleration and cessation of cytoplasmic streaming. The results show that the permeability of plasmodesmata to low-molecular photometabolites is subject to upregulation and downregulation.

Manganese-mediated immobilization of arsenic by calcifying macro-algae, Chara braunii.

The restoration capability of charophyte Chara braunii was studied in arsenic-polluted water in the context of biogenic calcium and manganese depositions on the plant. In addition to calcite encrustation, formation of craterlike shape deposits of manganese oxides (MnOx) with diameters of 5-10 µm was detected on the cell walls of the plants grown in Mn-rich media. Relative proportions of arsenic taken up by the plant biomass to those incorporated into the calcium and manganese biominerals were determined using a modified sequential chemical extraction method. The mean total arsenic recovery from water reached its highest value at 375 mg kg-1 in treatment with HCO3- and high concentrations of Ca and Mn (40 and 2 mg L-1, respectively). The percentage of arsenic associated with the manganese deposits in the plants exposed to 0.5 mg L-1 As(III) increased from 16.3% to 51.7% of the total arsenic accumulation at low and high Mn levels (<0.05 and 2 mg L-1, respectively), that accounted for the highest Mn-bound arsenic contribution. Surface oxidation of As(III) by MnOx and subsequent precipitation-adsorption of the formed As(V) onto the evolving structure of MnOx could be a plausible mechanism for arsenic removal. The presence, and in some cases dominance of arsenic bound to the biogenic Ca and Mn deposits on the studied aquatic plant may contribute to preservation of arsenic in sediments in a less bioavailable form upon its senescence and decomposition.

Allelopathic effects of Chara species (C. aspera, C. baltica, and C. canescens) on the bloom-forming picocyanobacterium Synechococcus sp.

The role of macroalgal allelopathy in aquatic systems has received increasing attention as a potential means of controlling cyanobacterial blooms. However, the allelopathic activity of Chara sp. on coexisting and bloom-forming picocyanobacteria is still largely unknown. Therefore, the laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate the allelopathic activity of extracts of Chara aspera, C. baltica, and C. canescens on the growth, the fluorescence parameters: maximum and effective quantum yield of photosystem II (PSII) photochemistry (Fv/Fm and ΦPSII, respectively) and photosynthesis parameters such as the initial slope of photosynthesis-irradiance (P-E) curves (alpha) and photosynthetic capacity (Pm) of the picocyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. Batch cultures of picocyanobacterium were exposed to three concentrations of extracts originating from three charophyte cultures and the effect was followed at three sampling times. Dried specimens of C. aspera, C. baltica, and C. canescens were extracted in the water-based matrix and the initial Synechococcus sp. inoculum, derived from unialgal culture media, was used. We found both negative and positive allelopathic effects of all tested Chara extracts on Synechococcus sp. The strongest adverse impact of picocyanobacterium growth was caused by C. baltica. This study clearly demonstrated that the allelopathic effect depends on the Chara species identity. Our results also suggested that some allelopathic Chara sp. have the potential to mitigate harmful cyanobacterial blooms in systems dominated by Synechococcus sp.

Impact of herbivory and competition on lake ecosystem structure: underwater experimental manipulation.

Two basic ecological relationships, herbivory and competition, distinctively influence terrestrial ecosystem characteristics, such as plant cover, species richness and species composition. We conducted a cage experiment under natural conditions in an aquatic ecosystem to test the impacts of two treatments combined in a factorial manner: (i) a pulse treatment - removal of dominant competitors among primary producers (macroalgae Chara sp. and Vaucheria sp.), and (ii) a press treatment - preventing herbivore (fish, crayfish) access to caged plots. The plots were sampled once before the treatments were established and four more times within two years. Both treatments had a significantly positive impact on macrophyte cover and species richness and changed the macrophyte species composition. The effect of the macroalgae removal was immediate with the highest species richness occurrence during the first post-treatment monitoring, but the positive effect vanished with time. In contrast, preventing herbivore access had a gradual but long-lasting effect and reached a more steady-state over time. Two of the most common species showed contrasting responses, the palatable Potamogeton pectinatus was most supported by caging, while the distasteful Myriophyllum spicatum preferred open plots. Our findings may be applicable during the revitalisation of aquatic ecosystems that aims to increase macrophyte biodiversity.

Surface pH changes suggest a role for H+/OH- channels in salinity response of Chara australis.

To understand salt stress, the full impact of salinity on plant cell physiology has to be resolved. Electrical measurements suggest that salinity inhibits the proton pump and opens putative H+/OH- channels all over the cell surface of salt sensitive Chara australis (Beilby and Al Khazaaly 2009; Al Khazaaly and Beilby 2012). The channels open transiently at first, causing a characteristic noise in membrane potential difference (PD), and after longer exposure remain open with a typical current-voltage (I/V) profile, both abolished by the addition of 1 mM ZnCl2, the main known blocker of animal H+ channels. The cells were imaged with confocal microscopy, using fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) coupled to dextran 70 to illuminate the pH changes outside the cell wall in artificial fresh water (AFW) and in saline medium. In the early saline exposure, we observed alkaline patches (bright fluorescent spots) appearing transiently in random spatial distribution. After longer exposure, some of the spots became fixed in space. Saline also abolished or diminished the pH banding pattern observed in the untreated control cells. ZnCl2 suppressed the alkaline spot formation in saline and the pH banding pattern in AFW. The osmotic component of the saline stress did not produce transient bright spots or affect banding. The displacement of H+ from the cell wall charges, the H+/OH- channel conductance/density, and self-organization are discussed. No homologies to animal H+ channels were found. Salinity activation of the H+/OH- channels might contribute to saline response in roots of land plants and leaves of aquatic angiosperms.

Collision of two action potentials in a single excitable cell.

BACKGROUND: It is a common incident in nature, that two waves or pulses run into each other head-on. The outcome of such an event is of special interest, because it allows conclusions about the underlying physical nature of the pulses. The present experimental study dealt with the head-on meeting of two action potentials (AP) in a single excitable plant cell (Chara braunii internode). METHODS: The membrane potential was monitored with multiple sensors along a single excitable cell. In control experiments, an AP was excited electrically at either end of the cell cylinder. Subsequently, stimuli were applied simultaneously at both ends of the cell in order to generate two APs that met each other head-on. RESULTS: When two action potentials propagated into each other, the pulses did not penetrate but annihilated (N=26 experiments in n=10 cells). CONCLUSIONS: APs in excitable plant cells did not penetrate upon meeting head-on. In the classical electrical model, this behavior is specifically attributed to relaxation of ion channel proteins. From an acoustic point of view, annihilation can be viewed as a result of nonlinear material properties (e.g. a phase change). GENERAL SIGNIFICANCE: The present results suggest that APs in excitable animal and plant cells belong to a similar class of nonlinear phenomena. Intriguingly, other excitation waves in biology (intracellular waves, cortical spreading depression, etc.) also annihilate upon collision and are thus expected to follow the same underlying principles as the observed action potentials.

Depth-dependence and monthly variability of charophyte biomass production: consequences for the precipitation of calcium carbonate in a shallow Chara-lake.

The month-to-month variability of biomass and CaCO3 precipitation by dense charophyte beds was studied in a shallow Chara-lake at two depths, 1 and 3 m. Charophyte dry weights (d.w.), the percentage contribution of calcium carbonate to the dry weight and the precipitation of CaCO3 per 1 m2 were analysed from May to October 2011. Physical-chemical parameters of water were also measured for the same sample locations. The mean dry weight and calcium carbonate precipitation were significantly higher at 1 m than at 3 m. The highest measured charophyte dry weight (exceeding 2000 g m-2) was noted at 1 m depth in September, and the highest CaCO3 content in the d.w. (exceeding 80 % of d.w.) was observed at 3 m depth in August. The highest CaCO3 precipitation per 1 m2 exceeded 1695 g at 1 m depth in August. Significant differences in photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) were found between 1 and 3 m depths; there were no significant differences between depths for other water properties. At both sampling depths, there were distinct correlations between the d.w., CaCO3 content and precipitation and water properties. In addition to PAR, the water temperature and magnesium and calcium ion concentrations were among the most significant determinants of CaCO3 content and d.w. The results show that light availability seems to be the major factor in determining charophyte biomass in a typical, undisturbed Chara-lake. The study results are discussed in light of the role of charophyte vegetation in whole ecosystem functioning, with a particular focus on sedimentary processes and the biogeochemical cycle within the littoral zone.

Auxin effects on ion transport in Chara corallina.

The plant hormone auxin has been widely studied with regard to synthesis, transport, signaling and functions among the land plants while there is still a lack of knowledge about the possible role for auxin regulation mechanisms in algae with "plant-like" structures. Here we use the alga Chara corallina as a model to study aspects of auxin signaling. In this respect we measured auxin on membrane potential changes and different ion fluxes (K(+), H(+)) through the plasma membrane. Results showed that auxin, mainly IAA, could hyperpolarize the membrane potential of C. corallina internodal cells. Ion flux measurements showed that the auxin-induced membrane potential change may be based on the change of K(+) permeability and/or channel activity rather than through the activation of proton pumps as known in land plants.

Immunocytochemical and immunogold analyses of histone H4 acetylation during Chara vulgaris spermiogenesis.

Histone acetylation is one of the epigenetic modifications which play a significant role in chromatin remodeling during spermiogenesis. Acetylation of the histone H4 makes the exchange of nucleoproteins easy. Research on mouse spermatogenesis showed that H4 histone acetylated at Lys 12 (H4K12ac) was specific only to spermatids. Immunocytochemical studies of Chara vulgaris spermatids with the use of antibodies against the histone H4K12ac revealed positive reactions in spermatid nuclei at stages I-VII. This reaction, connected with nuclear condensation, was much stronger at the early stages of spermiogenesis than later on. Moreover, it showed that at the stages V-VII in spermatid nuclei the presence of the histone H4K12ac corresponded with DNA double-strand breaks. Electron microscopy studies with the use of immunogold technique revealed an almost twofold difference between the mean total numbers of gold grains in the examined chromatin in both stages. This study showed nearly equal distribution of gold grains on condensed and non-condensed chromatin of spermatids at the stage III/IV (48.11% and 51.89%, respectively). In the later stage-VI, when chromatin condensation proceeded, labeling of condensed chromatin reached 57.27%, while in the case of non-condensed chromatin it dropped to 42.73%. The percentage analysis also revealed an increase (above 9%) in condensed chromatin labeling in relation to the stage III/IV. Intensive acetylation of histone H4 at the early stages is correlated with DNA DSBs and transcriptional activity. It facilitates chromatin loosening, which enables the correct course of chromatin remodeling at a later stage. Histone γH2AX also influences chromatin structure in many biological processes in different cell types. Current studies reveal other similarities regarding histone H4 acetylation, not only between Chara and mammals but between invertebrates (molluscs) and vertebrates (bony fishes) as well.

Etoposide interferes with the process of chromatin condensation during alga Chara vulgaris spermiogenesis.

DNA topoisomerase II plays an essential role in animal spermiogenesis, where changes of chromatin structure are connected with appearance of transient DNA breaks. Such topo II activity can be curtailed by inhibitors such as etoposide and suramine. The aim of the present study was to investigate, for the first time, the effect of etoposide on spermatid chromatin remodeling in the green alga Chara vulgaris. This inhibitor prolonged the early spermiogenesis stages and blocked the formation of the phosphorylated form of histone H2AX at stages VI-VII. The lack of transient DSBs at these stages impairs the elimination of supercoils containing nucleosomes which lead to disturbances in nucleoprotein exchange and the pattern of spermatid chromatin fibrils at stages VI-VIII. Immunofluorescent and ultrastructural observations revealed that during C. vulgaris spermiogenesis topo II played an important role similar to that in mammals. Some corresponding features had been pointed out before, the present studies showed further similarities.

Proton flows across the plasma membrane in microperforated characean internodes: tonoplast injury and involvement of cytoplasmic streaming.

Microperforation of characean cell wall with a glass micropipette in the absence of the tonoplast impalement was found to cause rapid alkalinization of the apoplast by 2-3 pH units, which may rigidify the cell wall structure, thus protecting the cell from further injury. A similar but a deeper insertion of a microneedle, associated with piercing the tonoplast and with an action potential generation, led to a considerable delay in the apoplast alkalinization without affecting the amplitude of the eventual increase in pH. The retardation by the mechanically elicited action potential of the incision-mediated pH transients in the apoplast contrasted sharply to the enhancement of these pH transients by the action potential triggered electrically before the microperforation. Hence, the delay of the apoplast alkalinization was not related to basic ionic mechanisms of plant action potentials. Measurements of the vacuolar pH after mechanical elicitation of an action potential indicate that the tonoplast piercing was accompanied by leakage of protons from the vacuole into the cytoplasm, which may strongly acidify the cytoplasm around the wounded area, thus collapsing the driving force for H(+) influx from the medium into the cytoplasm. The lag period preceding the onset of external alkalinization was found linearly related to the duration of temporal cessation of cytoplasmic streaming. The results suggest that the delayed alkalinization of the apoplast in the region of tonoplast wounding reflects the localized recovery of the proton motive force across the plasmalemma during replacement of the acidic cytoplasm with fresh portions of unimpaired cytoplasm upon restoration of cytoplasmic streaming.

Vesicular trafficking in characean green algae and the possible involvement of a VAMP72-family protein.

The RAB5 GTPase ARA6 (AtARA6) of Arabidopsis thaliana is known to be involved in endosomal trafficking by targeting vesicles to the plasma membrane. During this process AtARA6 is working in close relationship with the SNARE protein VAMP727 (vesicle associated membrane protein 727). Recently, ARA6 of the characean green algae Chara australis (CaARA6) was shown to have properties similar to AtARA6, pointing to similar trafficking pathways. In order to gain further insight into the vesicle trafficking machinery of characeae, C. australis was analyzed for homologous proteins of the VAMP72-family. A CaVAMP72 protein was detected and classified by protein sequence alignment and phylogenetic analyses.

The mitigating effect of calcification-dependent of utilization of inorganic carbon of Chara vulgaris Linn on NH4-N toxicity.

Increased ammonium (NH4-N) concentrations in water bodies have been reported to adversely affect the dominant species of submersed vegetation in meso-eutrophic waters worldwide. However calcareous plants were lowly sensitive to NH4-N toxicity. In order to make clear the function of calcification in the tolerance of calcareous plants to NH4-N stress, we studied the effects of increased HCO3(-) and additional NH4-N on calcification and utilization of dissolve inorganic carbon (DIC) in Chara vulgaris Linn in a 7-d sub-acute experiment (light:dark 12:12h) carried out in an open experimental system in lab. Results revealed that calcification was dependent of utilization of dissolve inorganic carbon. Additional HCO3(-) significantly decreased the increase of pH while additional NH4-N did not. And additional HCO3(-) significantly improved calcification while NH4-N did in versus in relation to the variation of DIC concentration. However, addition of both HCO3(-) and NH4-N increased utilization of DIC. This resulted in calcification to utilization of DIC ratio decreased under additional NH4-N condition while increased under additional HCO3(-) conditions in response to the variation of solution pH. In the present study, external HCO3(-) decreased the increase of solution pH by increasing calcification, which correspondingly mitigated the toxic effect of high NH4-N. And we argue that the mitigating effect of increased HCO3(-) on NH4-N toxicity is dependent of plant calcification, and it is a positive feedback mechanism, potentially leading to the dominance of calcareous plants in meso-eutrophic water bodies.

Transduction of pressure signal to electrical signal upon sudden increase in turgor pressure in Chara corallina.

By taking advantage of large cell size of Chara corallina, we analyzed the membrane depolarization induced by decreased turgor pressure (Shimmen in J Plant Res 124:639-644, 2011). In the present study, the response to increased turgor pressure was analyzed. When internodes were incubated in media containing 200 mM dimethyl sulfoxide, their intracellular osmolality gradually increased and reached a steady level after about 3 h. Upon removal of dimethyl sulfoxide, turgor pressure quickly increased. In response to the increase in turgor pressure, the internodes generated a transient membrane depolarization at its nodal end. The refractory period was very long and it took about 2 h for full recovery after the depolarizing response. Involvement of protein synthesis in recovery from refractoriness was suggested, based on experiments using inhibitors.

Further electrophysiological studies on cellular effect of herbicide, bromoxynil, using characean cells.

In the previous paper, I reported that 3,5-dibromo-4-hydroxybenzonitrile (bromoxynil) depolarizes the plasma membrane by inhibiting the electrogenic proton pump and discussed that the inhibition is caused by cytosol acidification due to influx of protonated bromoxynil and following release of proton (Shimmen in J Plant Res 123:715-722, 2010). However, a possibility of direct inhibition of the proton pump by bromoxynil flowed into the cell could not be excluded. In the present study, the direct effect of bromoxynil on the proton pump was unequivocally excluded.

The characean internodal cell as a model system for studying wound healing.

This work describes the characean internodal cell as a model system for the study of wound healing and compares wounds induced by certain chemicals and UV irradiation with wounds occurring in the natural environment. We review the existing literature and define three types of wound response: (1) cortical window formation characterised by disassembly of microtubules, transient inhibition of actin-dependent cytoplasmic streaming and chloroplast detachment, (2) fibrillar wound walls characterised by exocytosis of vesicles carrying wall polysaccharides and membrane-bound cellulose synthase complexes coupled with endocytosis of surplus membrane and (3) amorphous, callose- and membrane-containing wound walls characterised by exocytosis of vesicles and endoplasmic reticulum cisternae in the absence of membrane recycling. We hypothesize that these three wound responses reflect the extent of damage, probably Ca(2+) influx, and that the secretion of Ca(2+) -loaded endoplasmic reticulum cisternae is an emergency reaction in case of severe Ca(2+) load. Microtubules are not required for wound healing but their disassembly could have a signalling function. Transient reorganisation of the actin cytoskeleton into a meshwork of randomly oriented filaments is required for the migration of wound wall forming organelles, just as occurs in tip-growing plant cells. New data presented in this study show that during the deposition of an amorphous wound wall numerous actin rings are present, which may indicate specific ion fluxes and/or a storage form for actin. In addition, we present new evidence for the exocytosis of FM1-43-stained organelles, putative endosomes, required for plasma membrane repair during wound healing. Finally, we show that quickly growing fibrillar wound walls, even when deposited in the absence of microtubules, have a highly ordered helical structure of consistent handedness comprised of cellulose microfibrils.

Two parthenogenetic populations of Chara canescens differ in their capacity to acclimate to irradiance and salinity.

The parthenogens of Chara canescens (Charophyceae) occupy broader geographical and ecological ranges than their sexual counterparts. Two possible hypotheses explain the ubiquity of parthenogens: the occurrence of one or several parthenogens with wide niches, or of many parthenogens that are restricted to narrow ecological niches. For the purposes of this study, C. canescens individuals from two neighbouring populations of the Baltic Sea (Bodstedter Bodden = BB; Salzhaff = SH), which differed significantly in water transparency and salinity, were investigated for significant differences in physiological capacity. Individuals of both habitats acclimated quickly to daily changes in irradiances in the field, but the photosynthetic efficiency of PS II showed a significant decrease with increasing daily irradiance in the habitat BB, which has lower levels of salinity and water transparency. In addition to the field study, individuals were reared under different levels of environmental factors in the laboratory: four irradiances (70-600 µmol m(-2) s(-1)) and five salinity levels (0-24 psu). The individuals of both habitats grew almost equally well at intermediate salinity levels. Growth under the artificial light supply was highest at levels corresponding to the in situ conditions for each population. Total chlorophyll was highest at intermediate salinities (BB), or hardly changed with salinity (SH). The physiological capacity for individuals from SH clearly depends upon changing growth irradiance, whereas the capacity for individuals from BB was relatively independent of salinity and irradiance. These findings indicate that both parthenogenetic C. canescens populations are locally adapted to light. However, to test adaptive potential of the parthenogens, more than two populations should be tested in future.

Actin-dependent deposition of putative endosomes and endoplasmic reticulum during early stages of wound healing in characean internodal cells.

We investigated the behaviour of organelles stained with FM1-43 (putative endosomes) and/or LysoTracker Red (LTred; acidic compartments) and of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) during healing of puncture and UV-induced wounds in internodal cells of Nitella flexilis and Chara corallina. Immediately after puncture, wounds were passively sealed with a plug of solid vacuolar inclusions, onto which a bipartite wound wall was actively deposited. The outer, callose-containing amorphous layer consisted of remnants of FM1-43- and LTred-labelled organelles, ER cisternae and polysaccharide-containing secretory vesicles, which became deposited in the absence of membrane retrieval (compound exocytosis). During formation of the inner cellulosic layer, exocytosis of secretory vesicles with the newly formed plasma membrane is coupled to endocytosis via coated vesicles. Migration of FM1-43- and LTred-stained organelles, ER and secretory vesicles towards the cell cortex and deposition of a bipartite wound wall could also be induced by spot-like irradiation with ultraviolet light. Cytochalasin D reversibly inhibited the accumulation and deposition of organelles. Our study indicates that active actin-dependent deposition of putative recycling endosomes is required for wound healing (plasma membrane repair) and supports the hypothesis that deposition of ER cisternae helps to restore wounding-disturbed Ca(2+) metabolism.

Effects of cyclosis on chloroplast-cytoplasm interactions revealed with localized lighting in Characean cells at rest and after electrical excitation.

Cytoplasmic streaming in Characean internodes enables rapid intracellular transport and facilitates interactions between spatially remote cell regions. Cyclosis-mediated distant interactions might be particularly noticeable under nonuniform illumination, in the vicinity of light-shade borders where metabolites are transported between functionally distinct cell regions. In support of this notion, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters assessed on a microscopic area of Chara corallina internodal cells (area of inspection, AOI) responded to illumination of nearby regions in asymmetric manner depending on the vector of cytoplasmic streaming. When a beam of white light was applied through a 400-µm optic fiber upstream of AOI with regard to the direction of cytoplasmic streaming, non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) developed after a lag period in AOI exposed to moderate intensity light. Conversely, no NPQ was induced in the same cell area when the beam position was shifted to an equal distance downstream of AOI. Light-response curves for the efficiency of photosystem II electron transport in chloroplasts differed markedly depending on the illumination pattern (whole-cell versus small area illumination) but these differences were eliminated after the inhibition of cytoplasmic streaming with cytochalasin B. Localized illumination promoted chloroplast fluorescence responses to electrical plasmalemma excitation at high light intensities, which contrasts to the requirement of low to moderate irradiances for observation of the stimulus-response coupling under whole-cell illumination. The results indicate that different photosynthetic capacities of chloroplasts under general and localized illumination are related to lateral transport of nonevenly distributed cytoplasmic components between the cell parts with dominant photosynthetic and respiratory metabolism.