Jindong Zhao, Ph.D., Academician
Cyanobacteria functional genomics
Professor, College of Life Sciences, Peking University
tel：
Postcode：010-62754427
E-mail：jzhao@pku.edu.cn
1.Our Research focus on the mechanisms of photosynthesis and electron transfer as well as heterocyst differentiation and pattern formation in cyanobacteria, especially on the signal transduction and gene transcriptional regulation in the heterocyst differentiation process.
2.By now a lot of important genes have been isolated, such as hetR, hetN, patS and ccbp, all of which play key roles in the regulation of heterocyst formation.
Using Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 as a model system, we focused our study on a Ca2+-depenedent cysteine protease, Alr3815. Alr3815 protein is predicted to have a CysPc-domain, which is present in many Ca2+-dependent cysteine proteases.Our results suggest that Alr3815 is a calcium-dependent protease that is required for degradation of PSII in mature heterocysts.
CcbP from cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120 is a major Ca2-binding protein involved in heterocyst differentiation, a process that forms specialized nitrogen-fixing cells. We report the solution structures of CcbP in both Ca2+-free and Ca2+-bound forms determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Mutation of Asp38 at the stronger Ca2+-binding site of CcbP abolished its ability to regulate heterocyst formation in vivo. Our results provide the structural basis of the unique Ca2+ signaling mechanism during heterocyst differentiation
Hemidiscoidal phycobilisomes (PBS), the major light harvesting complexes of photosynthesis in most cyanobacteria, are composed of rods and cores, which are linked by the linker CpcG1 (LRC). We measured another type of PBS, CpcG2-PBS in mutant strains of Synechococcus PCC sp. 7002 lacking the linker CpcG2. Our results showed that energy transfer from CpcG2-PBS to PSI in the absence of state transitions could be significant under PBS-absorbing light and energy transfer from two types of PBS is independent to each other.
We use easy ambient sonic-spray ionization mass spectrometry (EASI-MS) to investigate the changes of acidic lipids in unicellular cyanobacteria during different growth phases. The results showed that the three representative cyanobacteria and their growth status can be easily determined based on the lipids components detected by EASI-MS. Significant decreases of the ratios of SQDG/PG and dramatic changes of the unsaturation level of lipids were observed in different culture times in these cyanobacteria, and these two unique characters can be used describe the aging of cyanobacteria.
Phycobilisomes (PBSs) are light-harvesting antennae that transfer energy to photosynthetic reaction centers in cyanobacteria and red algae. We report the structures of an intact PBS and a PBS in complex with photosystem II (PSII) from Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120 using single-particle electron microscopy in combination with biochemical and molecular analyses. In the PBS structure, all PBP trimers and the conserved linker protein domains were unambiguously located, and the global distribution of all chromophores was determined. We provide evidence that ApcE and ApcF are critical for the formation of a protrusion at the bottom of PBS, which plays an important role in mediating PBS interaction with PSII.
Cellulose synthase, encoded by the cesA gene, is responsible for the synthesis of cellulose in nature. We show that the cell wall of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 naturally contains cellulose. Overexpression of six genes from Gluconacetobacter xylinus in Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 resulted in very high-yield production of extracellular type-I cellulose. High-level cellulose production only occurred when the native cesA gene was inactivated and when cells were grown at low salinity.
Jia K, Yang MK, Liu X, Zhang Q, Cao GX, Ge F, Zhao JD. (2024) Deciphering the structure, function, and mechanism of lysine acetyltransferase cGNAT2 in cyanobacteria. Plant Physiol., 194: 634-661.
Lu Q, Liu YQ, Zhao JD, Yao M. (2024) Successive accumulation of biotic assemblages at a fine spatial scale along glacier-fed waters. iScience, 27: 109476.
Zhang SY, Yan Q, Zhao JD, Liu YQ, Yao M. (2024) Distinct multitrophic biopersity composition and community organization in a freshwater lake and a hypersaline lake on the Tibetan Plateau. iScience, 27: 110124.
Chen XY, Li S, Zhao JD, Yao M. (2024) Passive eDNA sampling facilitates biopersity monitoring and rare species detection. Environ. Int., 187: 108706.
Zheng LQ, Zhang ZD, Wang HR, Zheng ZG, Wang JY, Liu HY, Chen HL, Dong CX, Wang GP, Weng YX, Gao N, Zhao JD. (2023) Cryo-EM and femtosecond spectroscopic studies provide mechanistic insight into the energy transfer in CpcL-phycobilisomes.Nat. Commun.,14: 3961.
Yin L, Zheng ZG, Li YL, Li XY, Cheng D, Dong CX, Liu YX, Zhao JD. (2023) PatU3 plays a central role in coordinating cell pision and differentiation in pattern formation of filamentous cyanobacterium Nostoc sp. PCC 7120. Sci. China-Life Sci., 66: 2896-2909.
Wang HR, Zheng ZG, Zheng LQ, Zhang ZD, Dong CX, Zhao JD.(2023) Mutagenic analysis of the bundle‑shaped phycobilisome from Gloeobacter violaceus. Photosynth. Res., 158: 81-90.
Lu Q, Cheng C, Xiao L, Li J, Li X, Zhao X, Lu Z, Zhao JD, Yao M. (2023) Food webs reveal coexistence mechanisms and community organization in carnivores. Curr. Biol., 33: 647-659.
Zhang S, Bi Y, Zhao JD, Yao M (2023) To the north: eDNA tracing of the seasonal and spatial dynamics of fish assemblages along the world’s largest water persion project. J. Environ. Manage., 331: 117217.
Lu Q, Zhang SY, Du JQ, Liu Q, Dong CX, Zhao JD, Wang YF, Yao M (2023) Multi-group biopersity distributions and drivers of metacommunity organization along a glacial–fluvial–limnic pathway on the Tibetan Plateau. Environ. Res., 220:115236.
Li XY, Huang CH, Wei PJ, Zhang K, Dong CX, Lan Q, Zheng ZG, Zhang ZD, Zhao JD. (2022) Attachment of ferredoxin: NADP+oxidoreductase to phycobilisomes is required for photoheterotrophic growth of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002. Microorganisms, 10: 1313.
Zhang S, Zheng YT, Zhan AB, Dong CX, Zhao JD, Yao M. (2022) Environmental DNA captures native and non-native fish community variations across the lentic and lotic systems of a megacity. Sci. Adv., 8: eabk0097.
Zhang S, Lin MX, Liu JW, Chen JC, Liu D, Zhao JD, Yao M. (2022) A centenary tale: population genetic insights into the introduction history of the oriental fre-bellied toad (Bombina orientalis) in Beijing. BMC Ecol. Evol., 22: 117.
Chen XY, Kong YQ, Zhang S, Zhao JD, Li S, Yao M. (2022) Comparative evaluation of common materials as passive samplers of environmental DNA. Environ. Sci. Technol., 56: 10798-10807.
Yao M, Zhang S, Lu Q, Chen XY, Zhang SY, Kong YQ, Zhao JD. (2022) Fishing for fish environmental DNA: Ecological applications, methodological considerations, surveying designs, and ways forward. Mol. Ecol., 31: 5132-5164.
Zheng L, Zheng ZG, Li XY, Wang GP, Zhang K, Wei PJ, Zhao JD, Gao N. (2021) Structural insight into the mechanism of energy transfer in cyanobacterial phycobilisomes. Nat. Commun., 12: 5497.
Shao XN, Lu Q, Xiong MY, Bu HL, Shi XY, Wang DJ, Zhao JD, Li S, Yao M. (2021) Prey partitioning and livestock consumption in the world’s richest large carnivore assemblage. Curr. Biol., 31: 4887-4897.
Shao XN, Lu Q, Liu MZ, Xiong MY, Bu HL, Wang DJ, Liu SY, Zhao JD, Li S, Yao M. (2021) Generalist carnivores can be effective biopersity samplers of terrestrial vertebrates. Front. Ecol. Environ., 9: 557-563.
Zheng YT, Zhang S, Lu Q, Zhang SY, Wang LJ, Hong ML, Nguyen T, Zhao JD, Yao M. (2021) Population genetic patterns of a mangrove-associated frog reveal its colonization history and habitat connectivity. Divers. Distrib., 27: 1584-1600.
Lu Q, Xiao LY, Cheng C, Lu Z, Zhao JD, Yao M. (2021) Snow leopard dietary preferences and livestock predation revealed by fecal DNA metabarcoding: no evidence for apparent competition between wild and domestic prey. Front. Ecol. Evol., 9: 783546.
Zhang S, Zhao JD, Yao M (2020) A comprehensive and comparative evaluation of primers for metabarcoding eDNA from fish. Methods Ecol. Evol., 11: 1609-1625.
Liu X, Yang MK, Liu YF, Ge F, Zhao JD (2020) Structural and functional insights into a lysine deacylase in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002. Plant Physiol., 184: 762-776.
Chunxia Dong, Zhenggao Zheng, Hongrui Wang, Peijun Wei, Yilin Li, Xueang Zhang, Xinrui Li, Tianyi Zhang