02270nas a2200229 4500008004100000245011800041210006900159260001200228300000900240490000700249520153800256653002501794653002501819653001701844653002201861653002001883100001801903700002301921700002101944700002901965856004601994 2024 eng d00aPermanent stress adaptation and unexpected high light tolerance in the shade-adapted Chlamydomonas priscui0 aPermanent stress adaptation and unexpected high light tolerance  c08/2024 a22540 v133 a

The Antarctic photopsychrophile, Chlamydomonas priscui UWO241, is adapted to extreme environmental conditions, including permanent low temperatures, high salt, and shade. During long-term exposure to this extreme habitat, UWO241 appears to have lost several short-term mechanisms in favor of constitutive protection against environmental stress. This study investigated the physiological and growth responses of UWO241 to high-light conditions, evaluating the impacts of long-term acclimation to high light, low temperature, and high salinity on its ability to manage short-term photoinhibition. We found that UWO241 significantly increased its growth rate and photosynthetic activity at growth irradiances far exceeding native light conditions. Furthermore, UWO241 exhibited robust protection against short-term photoinhibition, particularly in photosystem I. Lastly, pre-acclimation to high light or low temperatures, but not high salinity, enhanced photoinhibition tolerance. These findings extend our understanding of stress tolerance in extremophilic algae. In the past 2 decades, climate change-related increasing glacial stream flow has perturbed long-term stable conditions, which has been associated with lake level rise, the thinning of ice covers, and the expansion of ice-free perimeters, leading to perturbations in light and salinity conditions. Our findings have implications for phytoplankton survival and the response to change scenarios in the light-limited environment of Antarctic ice-covered lakes.

10aCyclic electron flow10aenvironmental change10aextremophile10aphoto-acclimation10aphotoinhibition1 aPopson, Devon1 aD’Silva, Susanna1 aWheeless, Kaylie1 aMorgan-Kiss, Rachael, M. uhttps://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/13/16/2254