Complete inactivation of photosynthetic activity during desiccation and rapid recovery by rehydration in the aerial microalga Trentepohlia jolithus

Aerial microalgae are more exposed to harsh and rapidly changing environmental conditions, including desiccation and radiation. Under high light, aerial algae in the desiccated state would be highly subject to photodamage. Therefore, aerial algae need effective protective mechanisms to dissipate excess excitation energy. In this study, the changes in photosynthetic behaviors during desiccation and after rehydration in Trentepohlia jolithus were confirmed using chlorophyll a fluorescence (OJIP) transient, allowing determination of the photoprotection mechanisms of this aerial alga. The filaments of T. jolithus cells at 25% relative air humidity (RH) are significantly shrunken compared with those at 100% and 87% RH, decreasing the surface area for light absorption. At 25% RH, the shape and intensity of the OJIP transient disappeared, but recovered rapidly to the level at 100% RH after 5 s of rehydration. Compared with 100% RH, the maximum quantum yield of PSII (φ_Po ), phenomenological energy fluxes for absorption (ABS/CSm) and active PSII reaction centers (RCs) at 25% RH decreased significantly, the specific energy fluxes for absorption (ABS/RC) increased significantly, but the specific energy fluxes for trapping (TRo/RC) at 25% RH did not change. These parameters at 25% RH recovered rapidly to the level at 100% RH after 5 s of rehydration. These results suggest that the efficiency of PSII light absorption and activities of PSII RCs were reversibly down-regulated in desiccated T. jolithus, which may be a special adaptive mechanism for the survivability of aerial microalgae in habitats with rapidly changing water availability.