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Robustness of activity of Calvin cycle enzymes after high light and low temperature conditions in Antarctic vascular plants

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Abstract

Only two vascular plants have naturally colonized the Maritime Antarctic: Colobanthus quitensis and Deschampsia antarctica. We propose that one of the reasons of their success in this environment is the robustness of their CO2 assimilation machinery. In order to understand the mechanisms involved in the positive photosynthetic rates under stressful conditions, we analyzed changes in the activity of two key Calvin cycle enzymes: Ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase (Rubisco) and stromal Fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase after high light and low temperature treatments. Our results show that the activity of both enzymes does not decrease after 48 h high light/low temperature treatments, a feature usually observed in plants adapted to harsh environments. The activation state of both enzymes remained high throughout the treatments. This feature has been related to the redox state of the chloroplast, suggesting that both plants maintain their redox balance under high light and/or low temperature conditions assayed. Both plants differed in their responsiveness to cold acclimation as observed by gas exchange and enzymatic measurements. We propose that these differences may be related to microclimate adaptations to the environment they naturally develop in the Maritime Antarctic.

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Abbreviations

FBPase:

Fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase

Rubisco:

Ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase

AOS:

Active oxygen species

PFD:

Photon flux density

DTT:

Dithiothreitol

Pn:

Net photosynthesis

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support by CONICYT Doctoral Fellowship N° 403035, and MECESUP UCO-0214. We also thank Valeria Neira and Alexis Estay for their technical support. The authors acknowledge Instituto Antártico Chileno for the logistic support and official permits for collecting plants in protected areas.

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  1. Departamento de Botánica, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas, Universidad de Concepción, Casilla 160-C, Concepción, Chile

    E. Pérez-Torres, L. Bascuñán, A. Sierra, L. A. Bravo & L. J. Corcuera

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  1. E. Pérez-Torres
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  2. L. Bascuñán
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  3. A. Sierra
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  4. L. A. Bravo
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  5. L. J. Corcuera
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Correspondence to L. J. Corcuera.

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Pérez-Torres, E., Bascuñán, L., Sierra, A. et al. Robustness of activity of Calvin cycle enzymes after high light and low temperature conditions in Antarctic vascular plants. Polar Biol 29, 909–916 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-006-0131-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-006-0131-8

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