Review
Plant Sciences
Shin-Ya Miyagishima, Kan Tanaka
Summary: Several species of unicellular eukaryotic algae with simple genomic and cellular architecture, such as Cyanidioschyzon merolae, provide ideal conditions for cellular-level experiments. These algae lack rigid cell walls, enabling easy biochemical analysis and editing of multiple chromosomal loci through highly efficient homologous recombination. Additionally, they possess a minimal number of protein-coding genes and synchronized cell cycle progression, making them suitable for diverse omics analyses.
PLANT AND CELL PHYSIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Takayuki Fujiwara, Shunsuke Hirooka, Shin-ya Miyagishima
Summary: The unicellular red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae has a simple cellular and genomic architecture. A new nuclear targeting and transformant selection system using the antibiotic blasticidin S (BS) and the BS deaminase (BSD) selectable marker has been developed in C. merolae. This system enables simultaneous modification of two different chromosomal loci in the same strain, expanding the genetic modification capabilities of this alga.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Chihiro Yoshida, Miyabi Murakami, Anna Niwa, Masahiro Takeya, Takashi Osanai
Summary: This study discusses the extraction of a blue protein called CmPC from red algae, which shows high tolerance to high temperatures and acidic pH. The method used for extracting CmPC does not involve freeze-drying or freeze-thaw, providing a potential candidate for PC production with thermotolerant properties.
JOURNAL OF BIOSCIENCE AND BIOENGINEERING
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Melany Villegas-Valencia, Ricardo E. Gonzalez-Portela, Barbara Bastos de Freitas, Abdulaziz Al Jahdali, Gabriel I. Romero-Villegas, Raghdah Malibari, Rahul Vijay Kapoore, Claudio Fuentes-Grunewald, Kyle J. Lauersen
Summary: The west coast of the Arabian Peninsula is located next to the Red Sea, which has high temperatures and increased salinity compared to other bodies of water. This geography provides resources that can be used for algal biotechnology in circular economy. However, the extreme summer conditions in this region may not be suitable for most microalgae species. C. merolae 10D, a polyextremophilic red algae, has shown potential for cultivation in this environment due to its ability to tolerate high temperatures and acidity.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Mark Seger, Fakhriyya Mammadova, Melany Villegas-Valencia, Barbara Bastos de Freitas, Clarissa Chang, Iona Isachsen, Haley Hemstreet, Fatimah Abualsaud, Malia Boring, Peter J. Lammers, Kyle J. Lauersen
Summary: The polyextremophilic Cyanidiophyceae are red eukaryotic microalgae that have promising biotechnological properties. In this study, the researchers investigated the capacity of Cyanidioschyzon merolae 10D to accumulate ketocarotenoids by expressing genes from a green alga. The results showed that C. merolae can produce both phycocyanin and ketocarotenoid pigments.
METABOLIC ENGINEERING COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Sota Takahashi, Riho Okubo, Yu Kanesaki, Baifeng Zhou, Kazuhiro Takaya, Satoru Watanabe, Kan Tanaka, Sousuke Imamura
Summary: This study identified four transcription factors in the unicellular red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae that positively regulate triacylglycerol accumulation, with overexpression of LPAT1 notably increasing triacylglycerol content.
Article
Plant Sciences
Nobuko Sumiya
Summary: The study found that the MSA-core elements in the unicellular red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae play a key role in G2/M-phase-specific transcription, but the nature of their involvement is complex and varies among the four elements.
JOURNAL OF PLANT RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Miyabi Murakami, Takashi Osanai
Summary: By studying the properties of fl-amylase from the eukaryotic red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae, researchers found that CmBAM has high thermostability and acid resistance, making it suitable as an industrial enzyme. CmBAM has a high specificity for starch and immobilization improves storage stability and thermostability.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Baifeng Zhou, Sota Takahashi, Tokiaki Takemura, Kan Tanaka, Sousuke Imamura
Summary: The study established a NIR-Luc strain in the red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae using the firefly luciferase reporter assay, showing its utility in analyzing promoter activities.
JOURNAL OF GENERAL AND APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Anne K. Steensma, Yair Shachar-Hill, Berkley J. Walker
Summary: This study investigates the growth mechanism of Cyanidioschyzonmerolae, an extremophilic red microalga, in low-pH and high-temperature environments. The findings suggest that this alga may use a novel carbon-concentrating mechanism (CCM).
PHOTOSYNTHESIS RESEARCH
(2023)
Review
Plant Sciences
Imran Pancha, Kazuhiro Takaya, Kan Tanaka, Sousuke Imamura
Summary: Microalgae are valuable resources for biofuel production and industrial compounds, with the red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae serving as a model system to understand the mechanisms behind TAG and starch accumulation. Studies have revealed the crucial role of the target of rapamycin kinase in controlling the accumulation of TAGs and starch, and genetic engineering can significantly increase their levels in cells.
Article
Plant Sciences
Eugeniusz Parys, Tomasz Krupnik, Ilona Kulak, Kinga Kania, Elzbieta Romanowska
Summary: The study measured the photosynthesis and respiration rates of Cyanidioschizon merolae grown in different light qualities, showing that blue light significantly reduces photosynthesis rates while red light has a smaller impact. Blue light enhances respiration rate, while red light promotes the accumulation of chlorophyll a, zeaxanthin, and beta-carotene.
PHOTOSYNTHESIS RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Tsuneyoshi Kuroiwa, Fumi Yagisawa, Takayuki Fujiwara, Osami Misumi, Noriko Negata, Yuuta Imoto, Yamato Yoshida, Yuko Mogi, Shin-ya Miyagishima, Haruko Kuroiwa
Summary: It is believed that mitochondria originated from the symbiosis of autonomous alpha-proteobacteria and a eukaryote-like organism derived from an archaeon. This led to the loss of most alpha-proteobacterium genome and the transfer of many genes into the host genome. Evolution resulted in primitive eukaryotic cells with increased mtDNA copy number and the formation of mitochondrial nucleus, leading to organisms with multiple mitochondria containing multiple mtDNA copies or multiple mitochondria with a small number of mtDNA copies.
Review
Plant Sciences
Marjorie Chery, Laurence Drouard
Summary: This review article highlights the additional functions of tRNA in plants, apart from its role in protein synthesis, such as priming reverse transcription, mRNA transportation, and small RNA production. Additionally, tRNA has been found to play roles in tetrapyrrole biosynthesis, mRNA stabilization and transport, reverse transcription of viral RNAs, and the formation of tRNA-like structures in RNA viral genomes. The cleavage of tRNA also plays an important role in regulating gene expression and producing small non-coding RNAs known as tRNA-derived RNAs. Here, the biogenesis of tRNA-derived RNAs and their emerging functions in plants are examined in more detail.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Xun-Ke Sun, Yan-Lin Zhong, Xu-Yang Chen, Guan-Jun Chen, Zong-Jun Du
Summary: Bacterial strain M625(T) isolated from a marine red alga belongs to the genus Aquimarina within the family Flavobacteriaceae, showing high similarity to other known species. Based on polyphasic comparisons, a novel species, Aquimarina algicola sp. nov., is proposed for strain M625(T).
ARCHIVES OF MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Emiko Noro, Masaru Mori, Gakuto Makino, Yuki Takai, Sumiko Ohnuma, Asako Sato, Masaru Tomita, Kenji Nakahigashi, Akio Kanai
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yohei Hayashi, Kei Otsuka, Masayuki Ebina, Kaori Igarashi, Asuka Takehara, Mitsuyo Matsumoto, Akio Kanai, Kazuhiko Igarashi, Tomoyoshi Soga, Yasuhisa Matsui
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2017)
Article
Microbiology
Shohei Nagata, Junnosuke Imai, Gakuto Makino, Masaru Tomita, Akio Kanai
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2017)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Satoshi Tamaki, Masaru Tomita, Haruo Suzuki, Akio Kanai
FRONTIERS IN GENETICS
(2018)
Correction
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yohei Hayashi, Kei Otsuka, Masayuki Ebina, Kaori Igarashi, Asuka Takehara, Mitsuyo Matsumoto, Akio Kanai, Kazuhiko Igarashi, Tomoyoshi Soga, Yasuhisa Matsui
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2018)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Motofumi Saito, Asako Sato, Shohei Nagata, Satoshi Tamaki, Masaru Tomita, Haruo Suzuki, Akio Kanai
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2019)
Editorial Material
Genetics & Heredity
Akio Kanai, Tohru Yoshihisa
FRONTIERS IN GENETICS
(2019)
Article
Reproductive Biology
Yohei Hayashi, Masaru Mori, Kaori Igarashi, Keiko Tanaka, Asuka Takehara, Yumi Ito-Matsuoka, Akio Kanai, Nobuo Yaegashi, Tomoyoshi Soga, Yasuhisa Matsui
BIOLOGY OF REPRODUCTION
(2020)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Trieu-Duc Vu, Yuki Lwasaki, Shuji Shigenobu, Akiko Maruko, Kenshiro Oshima, Erica Lioka, Chao-Li Huang, Takashi Abe, Satoshi Tamaki, Yi-Wen Lin, Chih-Kuan Chen, Mei-Yeh Lu, Masaru Hojo, Hao-Ven Wang, Shun-Fen Tzeng, Hao-Jen Huang, Akio Kanai, Takashi Gojobori, Tzen-Yuh Chiang, H. Sunny Sun, Wen-Hsiung Li, Norihiro Okada
Article
Microbiology
Masahiro C. Miura, Shohei Nagata, Satoshi Tamaki, Masaru Tomita, Akio Kanai
Summary: This study developed a bioinformatic pipeline to systematically collect and analyze Group II introns (G2Is) in prokaryotes. The results showed the presence of G2Is in both bacteria and archaea, with their numbers defined almost at the phylum level. Furthermore, a comprehensive sequence analysis led to the identification of three new categories of intron-encoded proteins (IEPs), and it was observed that about 30% of IEPs are non-canonical. The study also analyzed the relationship between genomic signatures and the mechanism of G2I increases.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Megumi Tsurumaki, Motofumi Saito, Masaru Tomita, Akio Kanai
Summary: The candidate phyla radiation (CPR) bacteria, consisting mainly of uncultured lineages, have smaller cells and genomes compared to non-CPR bacteria. They lack certain ribosomal proteins and exhibit unique protein lengths and sequences. The ribosomes of CPR bacteria appear to be smaller with simplified surface structures, which may contribute to their distinct characteristics.
Article
Microbiology
Teppei Morita, Nadim Majdalani, Masahiro C. Miura, Rerina Inose, Taku Oshima, Masaru Tomita, Akio Kanai, Susan Gottesman
Summary: The regulatory function of many bacterial small RNAs (sRNAs) is dependent on the RNA chaperone Hfq binding to the 3' portion of the sRNA intrinsic terminator. This study identified several genes, including an sRNA gene (cyaR) and three protein-coding genes (cspD, ygjH, and rof), that attenuate the termination of SgrS in Escherichia coli. Overexpression of the protein attenuators CspD and Rof resulted in increased readthrough at terminators of SgrS and other sRNAs, reducing their regulatory effects on target mRNAs. Further analysis revealed the unexpected role of Rho in sRNA termination and the stabilizing effect of CspD on both terminated and readthrough transcripts. This study provides evidence of the modulation of intrinsic termination as an additional layer of regulation in sRNA signaling.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Motofumi Saito, Rerina Inose, Asako Sato, Masaru Tomita, Haruo Suzuki, Akio Kanai
Summary: The Clp1 family proteins play an essential role in RNA processing in eukaryotes, and their diversification is mainly due to gene duplication and alternative splicing. Our study reveals that the Clp1 and Nol9/Grc3 groups were already formed in the eukaryotic ancestor, and the protist phylum Euglenozoa has a particularly high number of Clp1 family proteins. This research provides valuable insights into the evolutionary history of Clp1 family proteins in different species.
JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR EVOLUTION
(2023)
Review
Geography, Physical
Naota Takeyama, Yuka Takahashi, Shohei Nagata, Yusuke Sawaki, Tomohiko Sato, Shigenori Maruyama, Akio Kanai
JOURNAL OF GEOGRAPHY-CHIGAKU ZASSHI
(2020)
Review
Geography, Physical
Megumi Tsurumaki, Motofumi Saito, Shigenori Maruyama, Akio Kanai
JOURNAL OF GEOGRAPHY-CHIGAKU ZASSHI
(2020)
