Tandem Repeats, High Copy Number and Remarkable Diel Expression Rhythm of Form II RuBisCO in Prorocentrum donghaiense (Dinophyceae)

Gene structure and expression regulation of form II RuBisCO (rbcII) in dinoflagellates are still poorly understood. Here we isolated this gene (Pdrbc) and investigated its diel expression pattern in a harmful algal bloom forming dinoflagellate Prorocentrum donghaiense. We obtained cDNA sequences with triple tandem repeats of the coding unit (CU); the 5′ region has the sequence of a typical dinoflagellate plastid gene, encoding an N-terminus with two transmembrane regions separated by a plastid transit peptide. The CUs (1,455 bp except 1464 bp in last CU) are connected through a 63 bp spacer. Phylogenetic analysis showed that rbcII CUs within species formed monophyletic clusters, indicative of intraspecific gene duplication or purifying evolution. Using quantitative PCR (qPCR) we estimated 117±40 CUs of Pdrbc in the P. donghaiense genome. Although it is commonly believed that most dinoflagellate genes lack transcriptional regulation, our RT-qPCR analysis on synchronized cultures revealed remarkable diel rhythm of Pdrbc expression, showing significant correlations of transcript abundance with the timing of the dark-to-light transition and cell cycle G2M-phase. When the cultures were shifted to continuous light, Pdrbc expression remained significantly correlated with the G2M-phase. Under continuous darkness the cell cycle was arrested at the G1 phase, and the rhythm of Pdrbc transcription disappeared. Our results suggest that dinoflagellate rbcII 1) undergoes duplication or sequence purification within species, 2) is organized in tandem arrays in most species probably to facilitate efficient translation and import of the encoded enzyme, and 3) is regulated transcriptionally in a cell cycle-dependent fashion at least in some dinoflagellates.