A Systematic Survey of the Light/Dark-dependent Protein Degradation Events in a Model Cyanobacterium

Light is essential for photosynthetic organisms and is involved in the regulation of protein synthesis and degradation. The significance of light-regulated protein degradation is exemplified by the well-established light-induced degradation and repair of the photosystem II reaction center D1 protein in higher plants and cyanobacteria. However, systematic studies of light-regulated protein degradation events in photosynthetic organisms are lacking. Thus, we conducted a large-scale survey of protein degradation under light or dark conditions in the model cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 (hereafter referred to as Synechocystis) using the isobaric labeling-based quantitative proteomics technique. The results revealed that 79 proteins showed light-regulated degradation, including proteins involved in photosystem II structure or function, quinone binding, and NADH dehydrogenase. Among these, 25 proteins were strongly dependent on light for degradation. Moreover, the light-dependent degradation of several proteins was sensitive to photosynthetic electron transport inhibitors (DCMU and DBMIB), suggesting that they are influenced by the redox state of the plastoquinone (PQ) pool. Together, our study comprehensively cataloged light-regulated protein degradation events, and the results serve as an important resource for future studies aimed at understanding light-regulated processes and protein quality control mechanisms in cyanobacteria.