Soumya Shraddhya Paul, Amity University, Noida
Farmers would need to cultivate 50% more food on a limited quantity of arable land by 2050 to feed a predicted 9 billion people. As a result, plant scientists are racing against the clock to improve photosynthesis to design crops with better yields. Researchers are attempting to incorporate components from blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) into agricultural plants since they are known to photosynthesize more effectively than most crops.
The recent study:
Recent research headed by Cornell University outlines a key step toward reaching that aim. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on August 11 and it is about how C3 Plant Development is Affected by the Lack of Carbonic Anhydrase in Chloroplasts, but Not Photosynthesis.
Photosynthetic plants convert carbon dioxide, water, and light into oxygen and sucrose, a sugar necessary for energy and tissue development. Rubisco, an enzyme present in all plants, “fixes” or transforms inorganic carbon from the air into an organic form that the plant utilizes to create tissues throughout this process. Rubisco interacts with both carbon dioxide and oxygen in the air, and the latter interaction produces harmful byproducts, inhibits photosynthesis, and decreases yields. In cyanobacteria, however, the Rubisco is housed in microcompartments called carboxysomes, which protect it from oxygen.
To make this technique work in agricultural plants, scientists must first remove a naturally occurring enzyme called carbonic anhydrase from the chloroplasts, which are the organelles in plant cells that carry out photosynthesis. This is because anhydrase’s job is to maintain CO2 and bicarbonate balance in plant cells by catalyzing processes in which CO2 and water combine to generate bicarbonate and vice versa. However, for cyanobacteria’s carbon-concentrating process to operate in crops, bicarbonate levels in the system must be several times greater than those seen at equilibrium.
The scientists detail how they used CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technology to deactivate genes that express two carbonic anhydrase enzymes found in chloroplasts in their study. Another study group had previously used a different approach to eliminate 99 percent of the activity of the anhydrase enzyme, and the plants had grown properly.
Conclusion:
These experiments revealed that, contrary to popular belief, the lack of carbonic anhydrase did not affect photosynthesis.
Another thing that was noted was carbonic anhydrase, which is present in chloroplasts, is known to be involved in the plant’s defense mechanisms, which might be a concern. However, Hanson’s team realized that they could use an enzymatically inactive form of carbonic anhydrase and yet keep the plant’s defenses intact.
Also read: The Warburg Effect: A Hallmark of Cancer
Reference:
- Hines, K. M., Chaudhari, V., Edgeworth, K. N., Owens, T. G., & Hanson, M. R. (2021). Absence of carbonic anhydrase in chloroplasts affects C 3 plant development but not photosynthesis. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(33), e2107425118. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2107425118
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Author info:
Soumya Shraddhya Paul is an undergrad biotechnology student who worked in building 3D prosthetics in Base Hospital Delhi Cantt, and holds a key interest in nutraceuticals and enzymology.
Publication:
- https://bioxone.in/news/worldnews/understanding-b-cell-genomics-to-fight-against-covid-19/
- https://bioxone.in/news/worldnews/the-current-ebola-epidemic-comes-to-an-end/
- https://bioxone.in/news/worldnews/an-improved-highly-resistant-tuberculosis-treatment-strategy/
- https://bioxone.in/news/worldnews/exosomes-role-in-lung-cancer-metastasis/
- https://bioxone.in/news/worldnews/depressive-disorders-and-pharmacotherapy-new-info-revealed/
Social Media Info: www.linkedin.com/in/soumya-shraddhya-paul-858229203
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