Organization and Dynamics of Respiratory Electron Transport Complexes in Cyanobacteria

Objective

Photosynthesis and respiration are two of the most important biological processes on Earth for energy supply. Cyanobacteria can perform both oxygenic photosynthesis and aerobic respiration in thylakoid membrane. However, compared to extensively studied photosynthesis, knowledge of respiration is not satisfactory. So far, the long-range organization and mobility of respiratory complexes have never been investigated, and how photosynthesis and respiration are regulated in vivo is unknown. This project aims to determine the spatial distribution and mobility of respiratory systems in cyanobacteria, and to elucidate the interaction and regulation of respiratory and photosynthetic electron transport chains in thylakoid membrane. The first aim is to construct cyanobacterial strains containing respiratory complexes tagged with GFP and mCherry. Then high-resolution fluorescence confocal microscopy and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching allow to study the distribution and mobility of fluorescently tagged respiratory complexes and naturally florescent photosynthetic proteins. To supplement the fluorescence observations, using electron microscopy and scanning probe microscopy, this project will further examine the supramolecular organization of photosynthetic and respiratory complexes in thylakoid membrane at the molecular level. Based on the in vivo and in vitro findings, it is possible to draw a picture of the large-scale distribution of respiratory and photosynthetic complexes in vivo at the level of individual complexes, and to explore the coordination and regulation between photosynthesis and respiration. Advanced understanding of the bioenergetic pathways will practically benefit biofuel and biodiesel engineering, to exploit and improve renewable energy production by controlling the complex pathways of electron transport in photosynthetic organisms. The interest of the interdisciplinary project covers molecular biology, biochemistry, biophysics and nanotechnology.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

• natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules proteins
• natural sciences physical sciences optics microscopy electron microscopy
• natural sciences physical sciences optics microscopy confocal microscopy
• natural sciences biological sciences botany
• natural sciences biological sciences molecular biology

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

• FP7-PEOPLE - Specific programme "People" implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013)

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

• FP7-PEOPLE-2009-IEF - Marie Curie Action: "Intra-European Fellowships for Career Development"

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

FP7-PEOPLE-2009-IEF
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Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

MC-IEF - Intra-European Fellowships (IEF)

Coordinator