Genetic engineering of dinoflagellate algae and the lethality of an introduced plastid terminal oxidase
Abstract
Dinoflagellate algae are a diverse group of single-celled eukaryotes, often living in marine environments. The majority of species are entirely free-living, but many can become symbionts with corals, jellyfish and other marine organisms. With rising sea temperatures, the function of the dinoflagellate photosynthetic machinery, and the redox state of the photosynthetic electron transport chain are impaired. This photosynthetic impairment is likely to be an important cause of coral bleaching. In the chloroplasts of plants and many algae, disturbance of the chloroplast redox state can be in part alleviated by the Plastid Terminal Oxidase protein (PTOX). Here, we made use of our newly developed genetic modification tools in the free-living dinoflagellate species Amphidinium carterae, which is found in both in temperate and tropical waters. We test if the introduction of PTOX to the chloroplast would allow A. carterae to withstand temperature stress. We find that the expression of the PTOX gene caused a lethal phenotype. Genetic engineering of dinoflagellate algae has long been problematic, and the ability to express heterologous proteins represents a significant advance in the long-term quest to engineer a heat-tolerant dinoflagellate.
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BibTeX
@article{nimmo2026genetic,
title = {{Genetic engineering of dinoflagellate algae and the lethality of an introduced plastid terminal oxidase}},
author = {I.C. Nimmo and C.E. Evans and Léo Minglu Li and A.C. Barbrook and K. Geisler and F.H. Kleiner and A. Scarampi and D. Kosmützky and L.T. Wey and Richard G. Dorrell and R.E.R. Nisbet and C.J. Howe},
journal = {Protist},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.protis.2026.126159},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05845792v1},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Genetic engineering of dinoflagellate algae and the lethality of an introduced plastid terminal oxidase
AU - I.C. Nimmo
AU - C.E. Evans
AU - Léo Minglu Li
AU - A.C. Barbrook
AU - K. Geisler
AU - F.H. Kleiner
AU - A. Scarampi
AU - D. Kosmützky
AU - L.T. Wey
AU - Richard G. Dorrell
AU - R.E.R. Nisbet
AU - C.J. Howe
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/30
JO - Protist
DO - 10.1016/j.protis.2026.126159
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05845792v1
AB - Dinoflagellate algae are a diverse group of single-celled eukaryotes, often living in marine environments. The majority of species are entirely free-living, but many can become symbionts with corals, jellyfish and other marine organisms. With rising sea temperatures, the function of the dinoflagellate photosynthetic machinery, and the redox state of the photosynthetic electron transport chain are impaired. This photosynthetic impairment is likely to be an important cause of coral bleaching. In the chloroplasts of plants and many algae, disturbance of the chloroplast redox state can be in part alleviated by the Plastid Terminal Oxidase protein (PTOX). Here, we made use of our newly developed genetic modification tools in the free-living dinoflagellate species Amphidinium carterae, which is found in both in temperate and tropical waters. We test if the introduction of PTOX to the chloroplast would allow A. carterae to withstand temperature stress. We find that the expression of the PTOX gene caused a lethal phenotype. Genetic engineering of dinoflagellate algae has long been problematic, and the ability to express heterologous proteins represents a significant advance in the long-term quest to engineer a heat-tolerant dinoflagellate.
SN - 1434-4610
SN - 1618-0941
ER -