Morphological Studies of Synechocystis sp. UNIWG under Polyhydroxyalkanoate Accumulating Conditions

Some cyanobacteria are capable of producing polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), among which is the unicellular Synechocystis sp. Here, we report the identification and preliminary characterization of a newly isolated strain of Synechocystis sp. UNIWG that is capable of accumulating unusually high number of PHA granules. This cyanobacterium was isolated from oil-contaminated brackish water sample from Wadi Gaza, Palestine. Surprisingly, Nile Blue A staining of PHA-accumulating cells failed to reveal the accumulated PHA granules. Ultrastructural analysis of Synechocystis sp. UNIWG cells grown under nitrogen limiting conditions revealed the presence of up to 17 electron-transparent granules in the cell cytoplasm. Gas chromatography analysis further revealed that these cells contain up to 14 wt% poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) of the cell dry weight. Ultrastructural analysis also revealed that Synechocystis sp. UNIWG cells from the growth phase were covered with a dense layer of pilus like structures. However, these pilus-like structures were not observed in cells from the PHA-accumulation phase. The possible roles of these pilus-like structures and PHA accumulation for the survival of this cyanobacterium is discussed here.