Interrelationship of Oxygen and Nitrogen Metabolism in the Filamentous Cyanobacterium Oscillatoria chalybea

Abstract

Abstract Filamentous Cyanobacteria. Hydrogen Peroxide, Photosystem II. Nitrogen Metabolism By means of mass spectrometric analysis we have been able to demonstrate H 20 2-production and its decomposition by photosystem II in thylakoids of the filamentous cyanobacterium Oscil­ latoria chalybea. This H2O2-production and its quasi simultaneous decomposition by the S-state system can be readily demonstrated in flash light illumination (K. P. Bader and G. H. Schmid, Biochim. Biophys. Acta 936, 179-186 (1988)) or as shown in the present paper in continuous light at low light intensities. These light conditions correspond essentially to the culturing condition of the organism on nitrate as the sole nitrogen source. Under these conditions, however, electron transport between the two photosystems seems to be mostly disconnected and respiratory activity practically non existent. Under these conditions, on the other hand, nitrate reductase is induced and nitrate reduced. The present paper addresses the question how this organism might solve the metabolic problems of nitrate reduction with such an electron transport system. Tested under high light intensities under which the organism would not grow at all, electron transport between the two photosystems is optimally linked and the system funnels part of its photosynthetically pro­duced electrons into a conventional cyanide-sensitive respiratory electron transport chain and even into an alternative Sham-sensitive (cyanide-insensitive) respiratory chain. This is made possible by the overweight of photosystem II capacity in comparison to photosystem I activity as reported in this paper. Under the conditions described, the cyanobacterium grows also on ar­ginine as the sole nitrogen source. Most interestingly under these conditions nitrate reductase induction is not shut off as is the case with other aminoacids like ornithine or alanine in the medium. Nitrite reductase is not induced in these bacteria, if grown on arginine as the sole nitrogen source. This observation is discussed in context with the fact that arginine is a major storage product (cyanophycin) in this organism and that the observed photosystem II mediated H2O2-production might be correlated with arginine metabolism.