Iron transport in cyanobacteria – from molecules to communities

• Published in: Trends in microbiology (Regular ed.) Vol. 30; no. 3; pp. 229 - 240
• Main Authors: Qiu, Guo-Wei, Koedooder, Coco, Qiu, Bao-Sheng, Shaked, Yeala, Keren, Nir
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.03.2022; Elsevier Science Ltd
• Subjects: Aquatic environment; bacterial community; Bioavailability; Cyanobacteria; Cyanobacteria - metabolism; Ecosystem; Ecosystem structure; Iron; Iron - metabolism; Low concentrations; membrane transport; Oxidation-Reduction; Synechocystis; Trichodesmium; iron; membrane transport; Synechocystis; Trichodesmium; bacterial community
• ISSN: 0966-842X; 1878-4380
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2021.06.001

Iron is an essential micronutrient for the ecologically important photoautotrophic cyanobacteria which are found across diverse aquatic environments. Low concentrations and poor bioavailability of certain iron species exert a strong control on cyanobacterial growth, affecting ecosystem structure and biogeochemical cycling. Here, we review the iron-acquisition pathways cyanobacteria utilize for overcoming these challenges. As the molecular details of cyanobacterial iron transport are being uncovered, an overall scheme of how cyanobacteria handle and exploit this scarce and redox-active micronutrient is emerging. Importantly, the range of biological solutions used by cyanobacteria to increase iron fluxes goes beyond transport and includes behavioral traits of colonial cyanobacteria and intricate cyanobacteria–bacteria interactions. Cyanobacteria evolved diverse biological solutions to overcome the challenges posed by the physicochemical speciation of iron in aquatic environments.Cyanobacteria can maintain selective iron transport in an aquatic medium containing high concentrations of competing divalent metal ions, utilizing substrate-selective porins combined with iron redox steps.New studies highlight the significance of cyanobacteria–microbe interaction in iron transport.