Preliminary study on plasma membrane fluidity of Psychrophilic Yeast Rhodotorula sp.NJ298 in low temperature

The ability of cell to modulate the fluidity of plasma membrane was crucial to the survival of microorganism at low temperature.Plasma membrane proteins,fatty acids and carotenoids profiles of Antarctic psychrophilc yeast Rhodotorula sp.NJ298 were investigated at-3 ℃,0 ℃ and 8 ℃.The results showed that plasma membrane protein content was greater at-3 ℃ than that at 8 ℃,and a unique membrane polypeptide composition with an apparent molecular mass of 94.7 kDa was newly synthesized with SDS-PAGE analysis;GC analysis showed that the main changes of fatty acids were the percentage of unsaturated fatty acids(C18:1 and C18:2) and shorter chain saturated fatty acid(C10:0) increased along with the decrease of the culture temperature from 8 ℃ to-3 ℃;HPLC analysis indicated that astaxanthin was the major functional carotenoids of the plasma membrane,percentage of which increased from 54.6±1.5% at 8 ℃ to 81.9±2.1% at-3 ℃.However the fluidity of plasma membrane which was determined by measuring fluorescence anisotropy was similar at-3 ℃,0 ℃ and 8 ℃.Hence these changes in plasma membrane's characteristics were involved in the cellular cold-adaptation by which NJ298 could maintain normal plasma membrane fluidity at near-freezing temperature.     

Effect of high salinity on cell growth and protein production of Antarctic ice microalgae Chlamydomonas sp. ICE-L

Antarctic ice microalgae Chlamydomonas sp. ICE-L can survive and thrive in Antarctic sea ice. In this study, Chlamydomonas sp. ICE-L could survive at the salinity of 132‰ NaCl. SDS-PAGE showed that the density of 2 bands (26 and 36 kD) decreased obviously at the salinity of 99‰ NaCl compared to at the salinity of 33‰ NaCl. The soluble proteins in Chlamydomonas sp. ICE-L grown under salinity of 33‰ and 99% NaCl were compared by 2-D gel electrophoresis. After shocking with high salinity, 8 protein spots were found to disappear, and the density of 28 protein spots decreased. In addition, 19 protein spots were enhanced or induced, including one new peptide (51 kD). The changes of proteins might be correlated with the resistance for Chlamydomonas sp. ICE-L to high salinity.     

Preliminary study on plasma membrane fluidity of Psychrophilic Yeast Rhodotorula sp.NJ298 in low temperature

The ability of cell to modulate the fluidity of plasma membrane was crucial to the survival of microorganism at low temperature. Plasma membrane proteins, fatty acids and carotenoids profiles of Antarctic psychrophilc yeast Rhodotorula sp. NJ298 were investigated at -3 ℃, 0 ℃ and 8 ℃. The results showed that plasma membrane protein content was greater at -3 ℃ than that at 8 ℃, and a unique membrane polypeptide composition with an apparent molecular mass of 94.7 kDa was newly synthesized with SDS-PAGE analysis; GC analysis showed that the main changes of fatty acids were the percentage of unsaturated fatty acids (C18∶ 1 and C18∶ 2) and shorter chain saturated fatty acid (C10∶ 0) increased along with the decrease of the culture temperature from 8 ℃ to -3 ℃; HPLC analysis indicated that astaxanthin was the major functional carotenoids of the plasma membrane, percentage of which increased from 54.6±1.5% at 8 ℃ to 81.9±2.1% at -3 ℃. However the fluidity of plasma membrane which was determined by measuring fluorescence anisotropy was similar at -3 ℃, 0 ℃ and 8 ℃. Hence these changes in plasma membrane's characteristics were involved in the cellular cold-adaptation by which NJ298 could maintain normal plasma membrane fluidity at near-freezing temperature.