von Caemmerer Group - CO2 fixation and water loss of leaves

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We are investigating aspects of carbon acquisition by plants including the biochemistry of CO₂ fixation and regulation of CO₂ diffusion into and within leaves.

We are members of two international research consortia: RIPE (Routes to Improving Photosynthetic Efficiency), an international collaboration which is aiming to improve C₃ photosynthesis (https://ripe.illinois.edu/) and the C₄ rice consortium which is attempting to transfer the CO₂ assimilation apparatus of high yielding crops such as maize into rice (https://c4rice.com/)

Current research topics include:

Understanding the biochemical regulation of C₃and C₄ photosynthesis
Studies on how to enhance C₃ and C₄ photosynthesis through molecular engineering
Understanding CO₂ diffusion inside leaves.
Physiological and molecular regulation of stomatal movement.

Plant environmental biology and functional ecology

Photosynthesis and plant energy biology

Membrane transporters and channels

Group Leader

Susanne von Caemmerer

Project	Status
C4 Rice Project	Current
CO2 acquisition by cyanobacteria and plants, & Synthetic Biology strategies for transplanting cyanobacterial CO2 Concentrating mechanism parts in crop plants	Current
CO2 diffusion inside leaves	Current
Electron transport and ATP synthesis in chloroplasts	Current
Environmental effects on photosynthesis of species with the C3-C4 intermediate photosynthetic pathway	Current
Physiological and molecular regulation of stomatal movement	Current
Student research projects in CO2 fixation and water loss of leaves	Current
Studies on the biochemical regulation of C3 and C4 photosynthesis	Current

Selected publications

Danila F, ThakurV, ChatterjeeJ, BalaS, CoeRA, AcebronK, FurbankRT, von Caemmerer S, QuickWP(2021) Bundle sheath suberisation is required for C₄ photosynthesis in a Setaria viridis mutant. Nature communications 4(1) 1-10.

Clark, V, Danila F, von Caemmerer, S (2021) CO₂ diffusion in tobacco: a link between mesophyll conductance and leaf anatomy. Interface focus 11 (2), 20200040.

Ermakova M , Arrivault, S , Giuliani, R, Danila, F , Alonso-Cantabrana, H , Vlad, D, Ishihara, H, Feil, R, Guenther, M , Borghi, GL , Covshoff, S, Ludwig, M , Cousins, AB, Langdale, JA , Kelly, S , Lunn, JE , Stitt, M , von Caemmerer, S, Furbank, RT (2020) Installation of C4 photosynthetic pathway enzymes in rice using a single construct. Plant Biotechnology journal 1-4

von Caemmerer, S, (2020) Invited review: Rubisco carboxylase/oxygenase: from the enzyme to the globe, a gas exchange perspective. Journal of Plant Physiology, 153240

Zhu, XB; Ort, D; Parry MA; von Caemmerer S, (2020) A wish list for synthetic biology in photosynthesis research. Journal of Experimental Botany 71 (7), 2219-2225.

Ermakova, M, Danila F, Furbank RT, von Caemmerer, S (2020) Invited review: On the road to C₄ rice, The Plant Journal, 101, 940-950.

Ermakova, M, Lopez-Calcagno, PE, Raines, CA, Furbank, RT, von Caemmerer, S (2019) Overexpression of the Rieske FeS protein of the Cytochrome b₆f complex increases C₄ photosynthesis. Communications Biology volume 2, Article number: 314 (2019)

Danila, FR, Quick, WP, White, RG, Kelly S; von Caemmerer, S; Furbank, RT (2018) Multiple mechanisms for enhanced plasmodesmatal density in disparate subtypes of C4 grasses. Journal of Experimental Botany 69 (5), 1135-1145

Rogers, A; Medlyn, B; Dukes, J; Bonan, G; von Caemmerer, S; Dietze; Kattge, J; Leakey, A; Mercado, L; Niinemets, Ü; Prentice, I; Serbin, S; Sitch, S; Way, D; Zaehle, S (2016) A Roadmap for Improving the Representation of Photosynthesis in Earth System Models. New Phytologist 213(1): 22-42.

Osborn, HL, Alonso-Cantabrana, H. Sharwood, RE, Covshoff, S, Evans JR, Furbank RT, von Caemmerer, S (2017) Effects of reduced carbonic anhydrase activity on CO₂ assimilation rates in Setaria viridis: a transgenic analysis. Journal of Experimental Botany 68 (2): 299-310

Danila, FR, Quick, WP, White, RG, Furbank, RT, von Caemmerer, S (2016) The metabolite pathway between bundle sheath and mesophyll: quantification of plasmodesmata in leaves of C₃ and C₄ monocots. The Plant Cell, The Plant Cell 28, 1461-1471

von Caemmerer, S, Furbank, RT (2016) Strategies for improving C₄ photosynthesis, Current Opinion in Plant Biology 31, 125-134.

Barbour MM, EvansJR, Simonin KA and von Caemmerer S (2016) On-line CO₂ and H₂O oxygen isotope fractionation allows estimation of mesophyll conductance in C₄ plants, and reveals that mesophyll conductance decreases as leaves age in both C₄ and C₃ plants. New Phytologist 210 (3), 875-889.

Ort^,DR, Merchant^,SS, Alric, J, Barkan, A, Blankenship, RE, Bock, R, Croce, R, Hanson, MR, Hibberd, JM, Long, SP, Moore, TA, James V. Moroney, JV, Niyogi, KK, Parry, MAJ, Peralta-Yahya^,PPP, Prince, RC, Redding^,KE, Spalding, MH, Klaas J. van Wijk^,KJ, Wim F.J. Vermaas, WFJ, von Caemmerer, S, Weber, APM, Yeates, TO, Yuan, JS, Zhu, X (2015) Redesigning photosynthesis to sustainably meet global food and bioenergy demand, PNAS - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 112, no. 28, pp. 8529-8536.

von Caemmerer, S and Evans JR, (2015) Temperature responses of mesophyll conductance differ greatly between species. Plant Cell & Environment 38, 629–637.
von Caemmerer, S, Quick WP, Furbank RT (2012) The Development of C4 Rice: Current Progress and Future Challenges. Science 336, 1671-1672. Abstract | Reprint | Full text
Tazoe Y, von Caemmerer S, Estavillo GM, Evans JR (2011) Using tunable diode laser spectroscopy to measure carbon isotope discrimination and mesophyll conductance to CO2 diffusion dynamically at different CO2 concentrations. . Plant Cell & Environment (in press 1 Nov 2010).
Price GD, Badger MR, von Caemmerer S (2011) The prospect of using cyanobacterial bicarbonate transporters to improve leaf photosynthesis in C3 crop plants. (invited review) Plant Physiology (in press, Oct 2010).
von Caemmerer S, Evans JR, (2010) Enhancing C3 photosynthesis Plant Physiology 154, 589-592.
Weber A, von Caemmerer S (2010) Plastid transport and metabolism of C3 and C4 plants - comparative analysis and possible biotechnological exploitation, Current Opinion in Plant Biology.13: 1-9
Pengelly JJL, Sirault XRR, TazoeY, Evans JR, Furbank RT, von Caemmerer, S (2010) Growth of the C4 dicot Flaveria bidentis: photosynthetic acclimation to low light through shifts in leaf anatomy and biochemistry. . J. exp Bot. 61, 4109-4122
Cousins, AB, Ghannoum, O, von Caemmerer, S, Badger, MR (2010) Simultaneous determination of Rubisco carboxylase and oxygenase kinetic parameters in Triticum aestivum and Zea mays using membrane inlet mass spectrometry. Plant Cell & Environment 33,444-452
Furbank RT, von Caemmerer S, Sheehy, J, Edwards, G (2009) C4 rice: a challenge for plant phenomics. Functional Plant Biology 36, 845-856
Yamori W, von Caemmerer S (2009) Effect of Rubisco activase deficiency on the temperature response of CO2 assimilation rate and Rubisco activation state: Insights from transgenic tobacco with reduced amounts of Rubisco activase. Plant Physiol.151, 2073-2082
Baroli, I, Price, DG, Badger, MR, von Caemmerer, S (2007) The contribution of photosynthesis to the red light response of stomatal conductance. Plant Physiol. 146, 737-743
Furumoto, T, Izui K, Quinn, V, Furbank, RT, von Caemmerer, S (2007) Phosphorylation of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase is not essential for high photosynthetic rates in the C4 species Flaveria bidentis Plant Physiol. 141, 1936-1945.