Oxidative stress in cyanobacteria

• Published in: FEMS microbiology reviews Vol. 33; no. 2; pp. 258 - 278
• Main Authors: Latifi, Amel, Ruiz, Marion, Zhang, Cheng-Cai
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Oxford, UK : Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.03.2009; Blackwell Publishing Ltd; Blackwell; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Antioxidants; Antioxidants - metabolism; Bacterial Proteins - genetics; Bacterial Proteins - metabolism; Bacteriology; Biological and medical sciences; Carbon dioxide; Carbon dioxide fixation; Carbon sequestration; Cyanobacteria; Cyanobacteria - genetics; Cyanobacteria - metabolism; Cyanobacteria - physiology; Electron transport; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; Heat-Shock Response; Luminous intensity; Microbiology; Miscellaneous; Oxidative Stress; Photosynthesis; Reactive oxygen species; Reactive Oxygen Species - metabolism; Transcription, Genetic; transcriptional regulation; Variation; photosynthesis; antioxidants; transcriptional regulation; cyanobacteria; reactive oxygen species; Oxidative stress; Reactive oxygen species; Cyanobacteria; Bacteria; Review; Antioxidant; Photosynthesis
• ISSN: 0168-6445; 1574-6976; 1574-6976
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1574-6976.2008.00134.x

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are byproducts of aerobic metabolism and potent agents that cause oxidative damage. In oxygenic photosynthetic organisms such as cyanobacteria, ROS are inevitably generated by photosynthetic electron transport, especially when the intensity of light-driven electron transport outpaces the rate of electron consumption during CO₂ fixation. Because cyanobacteria in their natural habitat are often exposed to changing external conditions, such as drastic fluctuations of light intensities, their ability to perceive ROS and to rapidly initiate antioxidant defences is crucial for their survival. This review summarizes recent findings and outlines important perspectives in this field.