ArticlePlant physiology2016
Hydrocarbons Are Essential for Optimal Cell Size, Division, and Growth of Cyanobacteria.
Article in Plant physiology, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 37 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
37 citing papers in PubMed, 69 citations in OpenAlex.
- CurT dosage quantitatively affects thylakoid structure and PSII performance in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803.The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology · 2026Article
- Ecosystem-scale genomic and metatranscriptomic evidence for a coupled, active short-term hydrocarbon cycle in the marine photic ocean.Applied and environmental microbiology · 2026Article
- Brown algae produce hydrocarbons via fatty acid photodecarboxylase-dependent and fatty acid photodecarboxylase-independent pathways.Plant physiology · 2026Article
- Predicted shifts in bacterial and algal contributions to DMSP and DMS dynamics during a coastal spring-summer bloom.The ISME journal · 2026Article
- Directed evolution of hydrocarbon-producing enzymes.Biotechnology for biofuels and bioproducts · 2025Review
- Alkane biosynthesis gene expression and its increased production in recombinant cyanobacteria.FEBS open bio · 2025Article
- Synergistic effect of alkane and membrane lipid alteration in Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942 under salt and light stresses.Journal of plant research · 2025Article
- Structure, biogenesis, and evolution of thylakoid membranes.The Plant cell · 2024Review
- Metagenomic survey reveals hydrocarbon biodegradation potential of Canadian high Arctic beaches.Environmental microbiome · 2024Article
- Absence of alka(e)nes triggers profound remodeling of glycerolipid and carotenoid composition in cyanobacteria membrane.Plant physiology · 2024Article
- Genomic insights into cryptic cycles of microbial hydrocarbon production and degradation in contiguous freshwater and marine microbiomes.Microbiome · 2023Article
- Incorporation, fate, and turnover of free fatty acids in cyanobacteria.FEMS microbiology reviews · 2023Review
- Article
- Polystyrene-colonizing bacteria are enriched for long-chain alkane degradation pathways.PloS one · 2023Article
- Recent advances in the improvement of cyanobacterial enzymes for bioalkane production.Microbial cell factories · 2022Review
- Development of a Biotechnology Platform for the Fast-Growing CyanobacteriumBiomolecules · 2022Article
- Insights into cyanobacterial alkane biosynthesis.Journal of industrial microbiology & biotechnology · 2022Review
- A dual compartment cuvette system for correcting scattering in whole-cell absorbance spectroscopy of photosynthetic microorganisms.Photosynthesis research · 2022Article
- Salt induced oxidative stress alters physiological, biochemical and metabolomic responses of green microalgaHeliyon · 2022Article
- A novel characteristic of a phytoplankton as a potential source of straight-chain alkanes.Scientific reports · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
17 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Cyanobacteria are intricately organized, incorporating an array of internal thylakoid membranes, the site of photosynthesis, into cells no larger than other bacteria. They also synthesize C15-C19 alkanes and alkenes, which results in substantial production of hydrocarbons in the environment. All sequenced cyanobacteria encode hydrocarbon biosynthesis pathways, suggesting an important, undefined physiological role for these compounds. Here, we demonstrate that hydrocarbon-deficient mutants of Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 and Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 exhibit significant phenotypic differences from wild type, including enlarged cell size, reduced growth, and increased division defects. Photosynthetic rates were similar between strains, although a minor reduction in energy transfer between the soluble light harvesting phycobilisome complex and membrane-bound photosystems was observed. Hydrocarbons were shown to accumulate in thylakoid and cytoplasmic membranes. Modeling of membranes suggests these compounds aggregate in the center of the lipid bilayer, potentially promoting membrane flexibility and facilitating curvature. In vivo measurements confirmed that Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 mutants lacking hydrocarbons exhibit reduced thylakoid membrane curvature compared to wild type. We propose that hydrocarbons may have a role in inducing the flexibility in membranes required for optimal cell division, size, and growth, and efficient association of soluble and membrane bound proteins. The recent identification of C15-C17 alkanes and alkenes in microalgal species suggests hydrocarbons may serve a similar function in a broad range of photosynthetic organisms.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.