Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-sjtt6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-23T04:16:53.808Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Directed exospermia: II. VUV-UV spectroscopy of specialized UV screens, including plant flavonoids, suggests using metabolic engineering to improve survival in space

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 August 2007

Andreja Zalar ,
David Tepfer ,
Søren V. Hoffmann ,
Albert Kollmann  and
Sydney Leach
Andreja Zalar
Affiliation:
Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Versailles 78026, France e-mail: tepfer@versailles.inra.fr
David Tepfer
Affiliation:
Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Versailles 78026, France e-mail: tepfer@versailles.inra.fr
Søren V. Hoffmann
Affiliation:
Institute for Storage Ring Facilities, University of Aarhus, Aarhus 8000, Denmark
Albert Kollmann
Affiliation:
Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Versailles 78026, France e-mail: tepfer@versailles.inra.fr
Sydney Leach
Affiliation:
LERMA, UMR 8112-CNRS, Observatoire de Paris-Meudon, 92195 Meudon, France
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

We used synchrotron light to determine VUV-UV absorption spectra (125–340 nm) of thin films of substances associated with UV resistance in specific groups of organisms or across limited phylogenetic boundaries: scytonemin, mycosporine-like amino acids, dipicolinic acid, β-carotene, melanin and flavonoids (quercitrin, isoquercitrin, robinin and catechin). The objective was to extend known UV absorption spectra into the vacuum UV, and to evaluate the likely effectiveness of these molecules in shielding DNA from the unfiltered solar UV found in space, using similarity with DNA absorption spectra as the primary criterion. The spectroscopy indicated that plant flavonoids would be ideal UV screens in space. We suggest that flavonoids represent primitive UV screens, and offer explanations (including horizontal gene transfer) for their presence in plants. We also discuss the possibility of improving UV resistance by increasing flavonoid accumulation through metabolic engineering, in the hope of better adapting life for space travel, i.e. for its dissemination away from the Earth (exospermia). Finally, we propose using plant seeds as exospermia vehicles for sending life (including artificial life) into space.

Keywords

β-carotenedipicolinic acidflavonoidsmelaninmycosporine-like amino acidspanspermiascytoneminseedUV resistanceVUV-UV absorption spectroscopy
Type
Research Article
Information
International Journal of Astrobiology , Volume 6 , Issue 4 , October 2007 , pp. 291 - 301
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2007

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Armstrong, G.A. (1994). J. Bacteriol. 176, 4795–4802.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bebout, B.M. & Garcia-Pichel, F. (1995). Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 61, 4215–4222.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berg, P.E. & Grecz, N. (1970). J. Bacteriol. 103, 517–519.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Castenholz, R. & Garcia-Pichel, F. (2000). The Ecology of Cyanobacteria, ed. Potts, M. & Whittton, B.A., pp. 591–611. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht.Google Scholar
Clancy, C.M.R., Nofsinger, J.B., Hanks, R.K. & Simon, J.D. (2000). J. Phys. Chem. B 104, 7871–7873.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cockell, C.S. & Knowland, J. (1999). Biol. Rev. Cambr. Philos. Soc. 74, 311–345.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Crick, F. (1981). Life Itself. Simon and Schuster, New York.Google Scholar
Crick, F.H.C. & Orgel, L.E. (1973). Icarus 19, 341–346.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dixon, R.A., Howles, P.A., Lamb, C., He, X.Z. & Reddy, J.T. (1998). Adv. Exp. Med. Biol. 439, 55–66.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Douki, T., Setlow, B. & Setlow, P. (2005). Photochem. Photobiol. Sci. 4, 591–597.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Duc le, H., Fraser, P.D., Tam, N.K. & Cutting, S.M. (2006). FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 255, 215–224.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eden, S., Limão-Vieira, P., Hoffmann, S.V. & Mason, N.J. (2006). Chem. Phys. 323, 313–333.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Everett, S.A., Kundu, S.C., Maddix, S. & Willson, R.L. (1995). Biochem. Soc. Trans. 23, 230S.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Firmin, J., Wilson, K., Rossen, L. & Johnston, A.W.B. (1986). Nature 324, 90–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garcia-Pichel, F. & Castenholz, R.W. (1991). J. Phycology 27, 395–409.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garcia-Pichel, F. & Castenholz, R.W. (1993). Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 59, 163–169.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garcia-Pichel, F., Sherry, N.D. & Castenholz, R.W. (1992). Photochem. Photobiol. 56, 17–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garcia-Pichel, F., Wingard, C.E. & Castenholz, R.W. (1993). Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 59, 170–176.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Germaine, G.R. & Murrell, W.G. (1973). Photochem. Photobiol. 17, 145–154.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Grecz, N., Tang, T. & Frank, H.A. (1973). J. Bacteriol. 113, 1058–1060.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hinojosa-Rebollar, E., Rangel-Mandujano, A., Ortigoza-Ferado, J., Mesta-Howard, A.M. & Hernandez-Rodriguez, C. (1993). Revista Latinoamer. Microbiol. 35, 399–406.Google Scholar
Horneck, G., Rettberg, P., Reitz, G., Wehner, J., Eschweiler, U., Strauch, K., Panitz, C., Starke, V. & Baumstark-Khan, C. (2001). Orig. Life Evol. Biosph. 31, 527–547.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Li, J., Ou-Lee, T.M., Raba, R., Amundson, R.G. & Last, R.L. (1993). Plant Cell 5, 171–179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lindsay, J.A. & Murrell, W.G. (1983). Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 113, 618–625.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Martin, W., Rujan, T., Richly, E., Hansen, A., Cornelsen, S., Lins, T., Leister, D., Stoebe, B., Hasegawa, M. & Penny, D. (2002). Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 99, 12 246–12 251.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meredith, P., Powell, B.J., Riesz, J., Nighswander-Rempel, S.P., Pederson, M.R. & Moore, E.G. (2006). Soft Matter 2, 37–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meredith, P. & Riesz, J. (2004). Photochem. Photobiol. 79, 211–216.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Murrell, W.G. (1967). Adv. Microbial Physiol. 1, 133–251.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nakamura, H., Kobayashi, J. & Hirata, Y. (1982). J. Chromatography 250, 113–118.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Paidhungat, M., Ragkousi, K. & Setlow, P. (2001). J. Bacteriol. 183, 4886–4893.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pezzella, A., Napolitano, A., d'Ischia, M., Prota, G., Seraglia, R. & Traldi, P. (1997). Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrom. 11, 368–372.3.0.CO;2-E>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Proteau, P.J., Gerwick, W.H., Garcia-Pichel, F. & Castenholz, R. (1993). Experientia 49, 825–829.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Riley, P.A. (1997). Int. J. Biochem. Cell Biol. 29, 1235–1239.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Routaboul, J.-M., Kerhoas, L., Debeaujon, I., Pourcel, L., Caboche, M., Einhorn, J. & Lepiniec, L. (2006). Planta 224, 96–107.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Setlow, B., Atluri, S., Kitchel, R., Koziol-Dube, K. & Setlow, P. (2006). J. Bacteriol. 188, 3740–3747.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Setlow, B. & Setlow, P. (1993). Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 59, 640–643.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Setlow, P. (1994). J. Appl. Bacteriol. 76, 49S–60S.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shick, J.M. & Dunlap, W.C. (2002). Ann. Rev. Physiol. 64, 223–262.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sinha, R.P. & Hader, D.P. (2002). Adv. Space Res. 30, 1547–1556.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sinha, R.P., Klisch, M., Gröniger, A. & Häder, D.-P. (1998). J. Photochem. Photobiol. B: Biol. 47, 83–94.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sinha, R.P., Klisch, M. & Hader, D.-P. (1999). J. Photochem. Photobiol. B: Biol. 52, 59–64.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Slieman, T.A. & Nicholson, W.L. (2001). Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 67, 1274–1279.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Squier, A.H., Hodgson, D.A. & Keely, B.J. (2004). Organic Geochem. 35, 1221–1228.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Takano, S., Nakanishi, D. & Uemura, D. (1979). Chem. Lett. 8, 419–420.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Takano, S., Uemura, D. & Hirata, Y. (1978). Bot. Mar. 23, 65–68.Google Scholar
Taylor, A.G. & Harman, G.E. (1990). Ann. Rev. Phytopathol. 28, 321–339.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tepfer, D. & Leach, S. (2006). Astrophys. Space Sci. 306, 69–75.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wakamatsu, K. & Ito, S. (2002). Pigment Cell Res. 15, 174–183.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Westall, F., de Ronde, C.E., Southam, G., Grassineau, N., Colas, M., Cockell, C. & Lammer, H. (2006). Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. 361, 1857–1875.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whitehead, K. & Hedges, J.I. (2003). Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrom. 17, 2133–2138.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Winkel-Shirley, B. (2001). Plant Physiol. 126, 485–493.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zalar, A., Tepfer, D., Hoffmann, Søren V., Kenney, J.M. & Leach, S. (2007). Int. J. Astrobiol. 6(3), 229–240.CrossRefGoogle Scholar