The involvement of cryptochromes in the light- and circadian signaling pathways in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

隐花色素(Crys)是一种黄素蛋白，在植物中作为感官蓝光受体，从而调节蓝光的输入，从而携带生物钟。相比之下，哺乳动物的哭声是昼夜振荡机制的组成部分。此外，还有破碎型晶体，但它们的生物学功能在很大程度上仍不清楚。在绿色双鞭毛藻Chlamydomonas reinhardtii中，除了存在两种突破型叫声外，还存在一种植物叫声(PCRY)和一种动物叫声(ACRY)。我们发现，aCRY既可以作为感觉蓝光受体，也可以作为感觉红光受体。这对于一种黄素蛋白来说是新奇的，尤其是哭声。最近的数据还表明，在莱茵梭子虫中，pCRY和aCRY在功能上是相互交织的。我们将根据aCRY的光谱特性、其潜在的光驱动DNA修复功能以及这两个CRY在莱茵哈迪尔毛虫生物钟中的详细作用，重点介绍它在体内的信号转导机制。此外，我们还将在不同水平上研究这两种叫声的相互作用以及突破型叫声的作用。研究小组中的跨学科科学专家的结合将使我们能够获得关于不同晶体的光谱、分子生物学和结构特性的信息。

Cryptochromes (CRYs) are flavoproteins that act as sensory blue-light receptors in plants thereby mediating the input of blue light for the entrainment of the circadian clocks. In contrast, mammalian CRYs are components of the circadian oscillatory machinery. In addition, there are DASH-type CRYs, but their biological function is still largely unknown. In the green biflagellate alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a plant (pCRY) and an animal-like CRY (aCRY) exist as well as two DASH-type CRYs. We discovered that aCRY functions as a sensory blue-light receptor as well as a sensory red-light receptor. This is novel for a flavoprotein in general and a CRY in particular. Recent data also indicate that pCRY and aCRY in C. reinhardtii are functionally intertwined. We will focus on the in vivo mechanism of signal transduction of aCRY based on its spectral properties, its potential light-driven DNA repair function and the detailed role of both CRYs within the circadian clock of C. reinhardtii. Moreover, we will investigate the interplay of both CRYs as well as the function of a DASH-type CRY at different levels. The combination of the interdisciplinary scientific expertises within the research group will allow us to gain information about the spectroscopic, molecular biological and structural properties of the different CRYs.