Photosystem II stress tolerance in the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii under space conditions

Photosynthesis was established on the earth 3.5 billion years ago. Due to the absence of the ozone layer in the early atmosphere it was most likely adapted to the presence of ionizing radiation continuously emitted by solar and stellar flares. That complex radiation spectrum comprises protons, alpha particles, heavy charged particle-HZE, electrons, X-ray and neutrons. Such spectrum has a significant impact on biological systems which capture light energy for e.g. photosynthesis. Oxygenic photosynthesis of plants, algae and cyanobacteria initiates at the level of photosystem II (PSII), a multisubunit protein complex embedded in the thylakoid membrane inside chloroplasts. PSII uses sunlight to power the unique photo-induced oxidation of water to atmospheric oxygen which is indispensable for most life forms. It is an especially sensitive component if exposed to space radiation and thus an important target for research aimed at improving bioregenerative life-support systems. The unicellular green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is a long standing model organism for photosynthesis research. It was exposed to ionizing radiation in the ESA facility Biopan located in the Foton capsule brought to space by the Russian Soyuz for 15 days. The algae were tested in space under shielded conditions in the past, but they were never exposed to direct ionizing radiation such as in Biopan. Conditions for survival were identified. It was observed that the effect of space stress on the survival of the algae varied depending on the light conditions to which they were exposed during the flight. In some cases the flight experience caused a stimulation of the photosystem II oxygen evolution of the cells