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Cytokinins affect the akinete-germination stage of a terrestrial filamentous cyanobacterium, Nostoc sp. HK-01

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Abstract

Cyanobacteria are distributed globally in the sea, fresh water, and land. Akinetes (dormant cells) of cyanobacteria are highly resistant to dry conditions, contributing to the survival of terrestrial cyanobacteria. However, the substances that regulate akinete dormancy and germination have not been elucidated. The present study investigated the effects of the phytohormone cytokinin (CK), on the germination stage of a terrestrial filamentous cyanobacterium, Nostoc sp. HK-01. In the cell suspensions of Nostoc sp. HK-01, isopentenyladenine (iP), isopentenyladenosine (iPR), cis-zeatin (cZ), cis-zeatinriboside (cZR), trans-zeatin (tZ), and a trace amount of trans-zeatinriboside (tZR) were identified, according to their retention times and multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) transitions, using high performance liquid chromatography and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS/MS). Product ion scans also identified iP, iPR, cZ, and cZR. The present study established an isolation method for the dormant Nostoc akinetes, and then treated them with CKs. iP and tZ promoted the germination of akinetes, while cZ did not. S-4893, which is a CK antagonist, inhibited germination and the promotive activity of the applied iP. The results strongly suggest that cyanobacteria have a very similar perception system to plants, and that they regulate the dormancy and germination of their own cells and/or other cells via CKs. The production of CKs by several species of cyanobacteria was previously reported. However, this is the first investigation showing the role of phytohormones in the dormant cell physiology of cyanobacteria.

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Abbreviations

BA:

Benzyl adenine

CE:

Collision energy

CK:

Cytokinin

cZ:

cis-Zeatin

cZR:

cis-Zeatinriboside

DHZ:

Dihydrozeatin

DMSO:

Dimethyl sulfoxide

EPS:

Extracellular polysaccharides

HPLC-ESI-MS/MS:

High performance liquid chromatography and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry

iP:

Isopentenyladenine

iPR:

Isopentenyladenosine

tZ:

trans-Zeatin

tZR:

trans-Zeatinriboside

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows (JP17J00274, JP19J00830 to SK), Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B) (18H02142 to MN) and Sasakawa Scientific Research Grant from The Japan Science Society (28-539 to SK). The authors thank Dr. Takao Yokota (Teikyo University, Japan) for internal standards of cytokinin, and thank Dr. Masayuki Ohmori (The University of Tokyo, Japan) and Dr. Hiroshi Katoh (Mie University, Japan) for their useful advice about the genome of cyanobacteria. The authors would like to thank Editage (www.editage.com) for English language editing.

Funding

This work was funded by Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows (JP17J00274, JP19J00830), Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B) (18H02142) and Sasakawa Scientific Research Grant from The Japan Science Society (28-539).

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SK, MN, and KTY designed the experiments. SK, EY, KM, HY, MO, and KTY performed the experiments. SK edited the data, figures, table, and drafted the manuscript. MN, KM, and TA revised the manuscript. MN and TA supervised the project.

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Correspondence to Masatoshi Nakajima.

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Kimura, S., Nakajima, ., Yumoto, E. et al. Cytokinins affect the akinete-germination stage of a terrestrial filamentous cyanobacterium, Nostoc sp. HK-01. Plant Growth Regul 92, 273–282 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10725-020-00636-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10725-020-00636-x

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