Examination of metabolic responses to phosphorus limitation via proteomic analyses in the marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum

Abstract

Phosphorus (P) is an essential macronutrient for the survival of marine phytoplankton. In the present study, phytoplankton response to phosphorus limitation was studied by proteomic profiling in diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum in both cellular and molecular levels. A total of 42 non-redundant proteins were identified, among which 8 proteins were found to be upregulated and 34 proteins were downregulated. The results also showed that the proteins associated with inorganic phosphate uptake were downregulated, whereas the proteins involved in organic phosphorus uptake such as alkaline phosphatase were upregulated. The proteins involved in metabolic responses such as protein degradation, lipid accumulation and photorespiration were upregulated whereas energy metabolism, photosynthesis, amino acid and nucleic acid metabolism tend to be downregulated. Overall our results showed the changes in protein levels of P. tricornutum during phosphorus stress. This study preludes for understanding the role of phosphorous in marine biogeochemical cycles and phytoplankton response to phosphorous scarcity in ocean. It also provides insight into the succession of phytoplankton community, providing scientific basis for elucidating the mechanism of algal blooms.

Transcriptomic Response of Daphnia Magna to Nitrogen or Phosphorus Limited Diet

“…This result was in accord to a previous study where genes related to nuclear structure, replication, recombination and repair were down-regulated for daphnids fed with low-P diet [10]. Inhibition of P-limitation on nucleic acid metabolism and cell division could strongly affect the growth rate of phytoplankton, yeast and bacteria [19][20][21]. Thus, our result suggested similar mechanisms may exist in zooplankton, leading to low growth rate of daphnids population.…”

Temporal phosphate gradients reveal diverse acclimation responses in phytoplankton phosphate uptake

“…The regulation of transporters right after P pulses in phosphorus-limited phytoplankton cultures has been less analyzed. Nonetheless, Feng et al (49), in a proteomic analysis in P. tricornutum observed higher levels of a permease involved in P uptake in phosphorus-replete than in phosphorus-limited conditions. Moreover, a higher activity of low-affinity transporters at high P concentrations, regulated after transcription, has been reported in yeast (47,50,51).…”

Comparative Transcriptomic Analysis Reveals Novel Insights into the Adaptive Response of Skeletonema costatum to Changing Ambient Phosphorus

“…Phosphorus (P) is an essential macronutrient for phytoplankton growth and proliferation in the ocean ( Dyhrman et al, 2007 , 2012 ; White and Dyhrman, 2013 ; Feng et al, 2015 ), and its availability is often limiting for primary production ( Dyhrman et al, 2007 , 2012 ; Lin et al, 2012 ; White and Dyhrman, 2013 ; Feng et al, 2015 ). Dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP) and dissolved organic phosphorus (DOP) are the two major available sources of P in the ocean ( Ou et al, 2008 ; Dyhrman et al, 2012 ; Lin et al, 2012 ).…”

“…However, its concentration is low, usually less than 0.5 μmol L -1 , which cannot fulfill the needs of phytoplankton growth ( Benitez-Nelson, 2000 ; Cañellas et al, 2000 ; Ou, 2006 ; Ou et al, 2015 ). DOP, as another important dissolved P pool, comprises a significant portion of total P in both oceanic and coastal waters ( Orchard et al, 2009 ; Ruttenberg and Dyhrman, 2012 ) and can be utilized by some phytoplankton species ( Dyhrman et al, 2012 ; Feng et al, 2015 ; Ou et al, 2015 ). Thus, the capacity of phytoplankton to utilize DOP in a DIP-deficient ambient is essential to their success in the ocean.…”