Two chloroplast thioredoxin systems differentially modulate photosynthesis in Arabidopsis depending on light intensity and leaf age

Various regulatory mechanisms have evolved in plants to optimize photosynthetic activity under fluctuating light. Thioredoxins (TRX) are members of the regulatory network balancing activities of light and carbon fixation reactions in chloroplasts. We have studied the impact of two chloroplast TRX systems, the ferredoxin‐dependent TRX reductase (FTR) and the NADPH‐dependent TRX reductase C (NTRC) on regulation of photosynthesis by mutants lacking or overexpressing a component of either system. Plants were subjected to image‐based phenotyping and chlorophyll fluorescence measurements that allow long‐term monitoring of the development and photosynthetic activity of the rosettes, respectively. Our experiments demonstrate that NTRC and FTR systems respond differently to variation of light intensity. NTRC was an indispensable regulator of photosynthesis in young leaves, at light‐intensity transitions and under low light intensities limiting photosynthesis, whereas steady‐state exposure of plants to growth or higher light intensities diminished the need of NTRC in regulation of photosynthesis. In fluctuating light, overexpression of NTRC increased the quantum yield of Photosystem II (YII) at low light and stimulated the relaxation of non‐photochemical quenching (NPQ) after high light exposure, indicating that overexpression of NTRC improves leaf capacity to convert light energy to chemical energy under these conditions. Overexpression of chimeric protein (NTR‐TRXf) containing both the thioredoxin reductase and TRXf activity on an ntrc mutant background, did not completely recover either growth or steady‐state photosynthetic activity, whereas OE‐NTR‐TRXf plants exposed to fluctuating light regained the wild‐type level of Y(II) and NPQ.