DNA as a phosphate storage polymer and the alternative advantages of polyploidy for growth or survival

Haloferax volcanii uses extracellular DNA as a source for carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorous. However, it can also grow to a limited extend in the absence of added phosphorous, indicating that it contains an intracellular phosphate storage molecule. As Hfx. volcanii is polyploid, it was investigated...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2014-04, Vol.9 (4), p.e94819-e94819
Main Authors: Zerulla, Karolin, Chimileski, Scott, Näther, Daniela, Gophna, Uri, Papke, R Thane, Soppa, Jörg
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Addition polymerization
Advantages
Archaea
Bacteria
Biofilms
Biological evolution
Biology
Biology and Life Sciences
Biomolecules
Biopolymers - metabolism
Biosynthesis
Carbon
Cell cycle
Cell survival
Chromosomes
Chromosomes, Archaeal - genetics
Deoxyribonucleic acid
Desiccation
DNA
DNA, Archaeal - metabolism
Drying
Gene expression
Genome, Archaeal - genetics
Genomes
Haloferax volcanii - drug effects
Haloferax volcanii - genetics
Haloferax volcanii - growth & development
Haloferax volcanii - metabolism
Intracellular Space - metabolism
Laboratories
Metabolism
Microbial Viability - drug effects
Molecular Weight
Nitrogen
Nitrogen - metabolism
Phosphate
Phosphate starvation response
Phosphates
Phosphates - metabolism
Phosphates - pharmacology
Phosphorus - metabolism
Physiological aspects
Ploidy
Polymers
Polyploidy
Prokaryotes
Research and Analysis Methods
Ribonucleic acid
Ribosomes
RNA
RNA, Ribosomal - metabolism
rRNA
Starvation
Storage
Survival
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Summary:Haloferax volcanii uses extracellular DNA as a source for carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorous. However, it can also grow to a limited extend in the absence of added phosphorous, indicating that it contains an intracellular phosphate storage molecule. As Hfx. volcanii is polyploid, it was investigated whether DNA might be used as storage polymer, in addition to its role as genetic material. It could be verified that during phosphate starvation cells multiply by distributing as well as by degrading their chromosomes. In contrast, the number of ribosomes stayed constant, revealing that ribosomes are distributed to descendant cells, but not degraded. These results suggest that the phosphate of phosphate-containing biomolecules (other than DNA and RNA) originates from that stored in DNA, not in rRNA. Adding phosphate to chromosome depleted cells rapidly restores polyploidy. Quantification of desiccation survival of cells with different ploidy levels showed that under phosphate starvation Hfx. volcanii diminishes genetic advantages of polyploidy in favor of cell multiplication. The consequences of the usage of genomic DNA as phosphate storage polymer are discussed as well as the hypothesis that DNA might have initially evolved in evolution as a storage polymer, and the various genetic benefits evolved later.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0094819