Phosphoproteome of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 and its dynamics during nitrogen starvation

Philipp Spät, Boris Maček, Karl Forchhammer

Cyanobacteria have shaped the earth's biosphere as the first oxygenic photoautotrophs and still play an important role in many ecosystems. The ability to adapt to changing environmental conditions is an essential characteristic in order to ensure survival. To this end, numerous studies have shown that bacteria use protein post-translational modifications such as Ser/Thr/Tyr phosphorylation in cell signaling, adaptation, and regulation. Nevertheless, our knowledge of cyanobacterial phosphoproteomes and their dynamic response to environmental stimuli is relatively limited. In this study, we applied gel-free methods and high accuracy mass spectrometry toward the detection of Ser/Thr/Tyr phosphorylation events in the model cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. We could identify over 300 phosphorylation events in cultures grown on nitrate as exclusive nitrogen source. Chemical dimethylation labeling was applied to investigate proteome and phosphoproteome dynamics during nitrogen starvation. Our dataset describes the most comprehensive (phospho)proteome of Synechocystis to date, identifying 2382 proteins and 183 phosphorylation events and quantifying 2111 proteins and 148 phosphorylation events during nitrogen starvation. Global protein phosphorylation levels were increased in response to nitrogen depletion after 24 h. Among the proteins with increased phosphorylation, the PII signaling protein showed the highest fold-change, serving as positive control. Other proteins with increased phosphorylation levels comprised functions in photosynthesis and in carbon and nitrogen metabolism. This study reveals dynamics of Synechocystis phosphoproteome in response to environmental stimuli and suggests an important role of protein Ser/Thr/Tyr phosphorylation in fundamental mechanisms of homeostatic control in cyanobacteria.