description
- Photosynthetic algae fix approximately 50% of global CO2, yet our understanding of the molecular mechanisms driving this process are limited. Deep knowledge of algal CO2 fixation at the genetic level has great potential for enhancing photosynthesis to improve biological carbon capture to drive a future carbon neutral economy and to enhance crop yields to ensure food security. This multidisciplinary project will use cutting edge methods in microscopy, robotics and synthetic biology to give rapid advances in our understanding of CO2 fixation in algae and supply the knowledge and tools for future engineering efforts to increase crop yields and biological based carbon capture systems. Nearly all algae have evolved a photosynthetic turbocharger called a CO2 concentrating mechanism (CCM) that increases the efficiency of the primary carbon fixing enzyme, Rubisco, by increasing levels of its substrate CO2 in its proximity. The engineering of a CCM into crop plants that have failed to evolve CCMs, such as rice and wheat, is predicted to increase yields by up to 60%. The data generated in this project will give us an unprecedented insight into CO2 fixation in prokaryotic and eukaryotic algae. The data will subsequently guide the assembly of the first test tube CO2 concentrating system that will act as a platform for testing different components (i.e. proteins) and optimising component combinations to enable the engineering of CCMs into plants. To attain our goal, we will systematically identify the CCM components and regulatory mechanisms of two evolutionary distinct algae that are fundamental for global CO2 fixation, eukaryotic diatoms and prokaryotic cyanobacteria. We will use this data to identify the underlying principles for efficient CO2 fixation and provide the knowledge and molecular toolkit to engineer a synthetic CCM. To achieve this the project has three core objectives: 1) Generate the first complete cell protein map for a photosynthetic organism to give novel insights into cyanobacterial CO2 fixation. 2) Identify the core components of the poorly understood diatom CCM using high-throughput gene editing and protein localisation methods. 3) Build a synthetic CO2 fixation system to guide the engineering of enhanced photosynthesis in plants. Together, I anticipate the data will pave the way for future engineering efforts of CCMs to enhance photosynthesis.