Berlin 2024 – scientific programme
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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 8: Poster Session Ia
BP 8.41: Poster
Monday, March 18, 2024, 18:00–20:30, Poster C
Unravelling the action spectrum of light-switchable flagellar adhesion of Chlamydomonas — •Rodrigo Catalan1,2, Antoine Girot1,2, Alexandros Fragkopoulos1,2, Olga Baidukova3, Darius Rauch3, Peter Hegemann3, and Oliver Bäumchen1,2 — 1Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization (MPIDS), Am Fassberg 17, 37077 Göttingen , Germany — 2University of Bayreuth, Experimental Physics V, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany — 3Humboldt University of Berlin, Institute of Biology, Invalidenstrasse 42, 10115 Berlin, Germany.
Most of the phenotypic repertoire of photoactive microorganisms is regulated by light-sensitive proteins called photoreceptors, which enable the organisms to adapt to alterations of their environment. The unicellular biflagellated microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii has been used as a model organism to study light-mediated phenotypes, such as phototaxis, the sexual life cycle, and the circadian rhythm. Recently, we discovered that C. reinhardtii can reversibly switch on and off the adhesiveness of their flagella in blue and red light, respectively [Kreis et al., Nature Physics, 2018]. Using single-cell micropipette force measurements, we show that the action spectrum of flagellar adhesion forces in wild-type (WT) C. reinhardtii cells resembles the spectral sensitivity of cryptochrome (Cry) photoreceptors. Further comparison of the flagellar adhesion forces between WT and mutant C. reinhardtii cells lacking one or two known photoreceptors reveals that the deletion of both animal- and plant Cry completely disrupts the adhesion phenotype.
Keywords: Cell adhesion; Chlamydomonas; Flagella; Cryptochromes