From seawater to pyrenoid: the molecular architecture of the diatom CO2-concentrating mechanism (Ginga Shimakawa , Onyou Nam , Alexander F Schober , Oliver Mueller-Cajar , Luke C M Mackinder , Yusuke Matsuda) doi.org/10.1093/plph... #PlantScience @aspbofficial
From seawater to pyrenoid: the molecular architecture of the diatom CO2-concentrating mechanism
Abstract. Diatoms are the most successful group of algae and their photosynthesis accounts for up to 20% of annual global CO2 fixation. A key factor to the
doi.org
October 19, 2026 at 1:17 PM
From seawater to pyrenoid: the molecular architecture of the diatom CO2-concentrating mechanism (Ginga Shimakawa , Onyou Nam , Alexander F Schober , Oliver Mueller-Cajar , Luke C M Mackinder , Yusuke Matsuda) doi.org/10.1093/plph... #PlantScience @aspbofficial
Check out our new poster on the pyrenoid— a diverse, convergently evolved, chloroplast compartment that supercharges #C02 fixation in algae 🧪🌊🌍
In their Cell Science at a Glance article and associated poster, @phaips.vd.st, Benjamin Engel @cellarchlab.com & @manondemulder.bsky.social highlight the current insights and future directions of pyrenoid and CO2-concentrating mechanism research.
journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
October 14, 2026 at 11:32 AM
Check out our new poster on the pyrenoid— a diverse, convergently evolved, chloroplast compartment that supercharges #C02 fixation in algae 🧪🌊🌍
In their Cell Science at a Glance article and associated poster, @phaips.vd.st, Benjamin Engel @cellarchlab.com & @manondemulder.bsky.social highlight the current insights and future directions of pyrenoid and CO2-concentrating mechanism research.
journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
October 14, 2026 at 10:44 AM
In their Cell Science at a Glance article and associated poster, @phaips.vd.st, Benjamin Engel @cellarchlab.com & @manondemulder.bsky.social highlight the current insights and future directions of pyrenoid and CO2-concentrating mechanism research.
journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
This week, Shan He (Her Lab, www.shanhelab.org/research ) will present "Kinase KEY1 controls pyrenoid condensate size" at the PlantCMB seminar series. Please join us This Wednesday at noon in Biochemistry Room 2131 (Otc 14).
October 12, 2026 at 3:36 PM
This week, Shan He (Her Lab, www.shanhelab.org/research ) will present "Kinase KEY1 controls pyrenoid condensate size" at the PlantCMB seminar series. Please join us This Wednesday at noon in Biochemistry Room 2131 (Otc 14).
Job ID: 15384
Extract: The Mackinder Lab at the University of York seeks a postdoc for a BBSRC project on CO2-fixing Rubisco biomolecular condensates. The role involves investigating pyrenoid evolution and collaborating with various partners.
Extract: The Mackinder Lab at the University of York seeks a postdoc for a BBSRC project on CO2-fixing Rubisco biomolecular condensates. The role involves investigating pyrenoid evolution and collaborating with various partners.
October 8, 2026 at 9:13 AM
Job ID: 15384
Extract: The Mackinder Lab at the University of York seeks a postdoc for a BBSRC project on CO2-fixing Rubisco biomolecular condensates. The role involves investigating pyrenoid evolution and collaborating with various partners.
Extract: The Mackinder Lab at the University of York seeks a postdoc for a BBSRC project on CO2-fixing Rubisco biomolecular condensates. The role involves investigating pyrenoid evolution and collaborating with various partners.
Also in Issue 18:
- Research Highlights on lamin assembly, organelle dynamics in plant cells, prions & mitochondria function and stress granules
- The pyrenoid at a glance
- Review on the mechanisms and mechanics of aging
journals.biologists.com/jcs/issue/13...
- Research Highlights on lamin assembly, organelle dynamics in plant cells, prions & mitochondria function and stress granules
- The pyrenoid at a glance
- Review on the mechanisms and mechanics of aging
journals.biologists.com/jcs/issue/13...
October 7, 2026 at 10:25 AM
Also in Issue 18:
- Research Highlights on lamin assembly, organelle dynamics in plant cells, prions & mitochondria function and stress granules
- The pyrenoid at a glance
- Review on the mechanisms and mechanics of aging
journals.biologists.com/jcs/issue/13...
- Research Highlights on lamin assembly, organelle dynamics in plant cells, prions & mitochondria function and stress granules
- The pyrenoid at a glance
- Review on the mechanisms and mechanics of aging
journals.biologists.com/jcs/issue/13...
What even is a pyrenoid?
Check it out 👇
Check it out 👇
If you’ve always been curious about how algae fix carbon, @phaips.vd.st, @cellarchlab.com and I have put together the quickest route into pyrenoids. And if you don’t feel like reading at all, we have an accompanying poster
doi.org/10.1242/jcs....
doi.org/10.1242/jcs....
October 2, 2026 at 8:43 AM
What even is a pyrenoid?
Check it out 👇
Check it out 👇
The pyrenoid at a glance journals.biologists.com/jcs/article-...
The pyrenoid at a glance
Summary: Pyrenoids are chloroplast microcompartments that enhance Rubisco-based CO2 fixation in algae and hornworts. How pyrenoids assemble, function and evolved convergently across lineages is discus...
journals.biologists.com
September 29, 2026 at 11:56 AM
The pyrenoid at a glance journals.biologists.com/jcs/article-...
✅📄Now Free Access: Ancient reticulation, incomplete lineage sorting and the evolution of the pyrenoid at the dawn of hornwort diversification
Get the paper: doi.org/10.1093/aob/...
Get the paper: doi.org/10.1093/aob/...
Ancient reticulation, incomplete lineage sorting and the evolution of the pyrenoid at the dawn of hornwort diversification
AbstractBackground and Aims. Resolving the phylogeny of hornworts is critical in understanding the evolution of key morphological characters that are uniqu
doi.org
September 15, 2026 at 6:16 PM
✅📄Now Free Access: Ancient reticulation, incomplete lineage sorting and the evolution of the pyrenoid at the dawn of hornwort diversification
Get the paper: doi.org/10.1093/aob/...
Get the paper: doi.org/10.1093/aob/...
Some promising ideas for carboncapture may already exist inside living cells. 🦠
How do microorganisms capture CO₂ and what can we learn from them? 👉 Discover how @amkueffner.bsky.social and his Sustainable Biocatalysis research group are investigating exactly that at our institute.
How do microorganisms capture CO₂ and what can we learn from them? 👉 Discover how @amkueffner.bsky.social and his Sustainable Biocatalysis research group are investigating exactly that at our institute.
September 15, 2026 at 7:58 AM
Some promising ideas for carboncapture may already exist inside living cells. 🦠
How do microorganisms capture CO₂ and what can we learn from them? 👉 Discover how @amkueffner.bsky.social and his Sustainable Biocatalysis research group are investigating exactly that at our institute.
How do microorganisms capture CO₂ and what can we learn from them? 👉 Discover how @amkueffner.bsky.social and his Sustainable Biocatalysis research group are investigating exactly that at our institute.
Unsupervised machine-learning identifies latent pyrenoid states linked to mitotic remodeling defects and CO2-dependent growth https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.25.746929v1
August 26, 2026 at 10:30 AM
Unsupervised machine-learning identifies latent pyrenoid states linked to mitotic remodeling defects and CO2-dependent growth https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.25.746929v1
Unsupervised machine-learning identifies latent pyrenoid states linked to mitotic remodeling defects and CO2-dependent growth #SingleCell 🧪🧬🖥️
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.25.746929v1
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.25.746929v1
August 26, 2026 at 1:00 PM
Unsupervised machine-learning identifies latent pyrenoid states linked to mitotic remodeling defects and CO2-dependent growth #SingleCell 🧪🧬🖥️
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.25.746929v1
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.25.746929v1
Unsupervised machine-learning identifies latent pyrenoid states linked to mitotic remodeling defects and CO2-dependent growth https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.25.746929v1
August 26, 2026 at 10:30 AM
Unsupervised machine-learning identifies latent pyrenoid states linked to mitotic remodeling defects and CO2-dependent growth https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.25.746929v1
🧬🌱 Synthetic pyrenoids show EPYC1-Rubisco condensates enhance carboxylation through partitioning, not enzyme modification. EPYC1 evolution appears shaped by this function.
A bottom-up view of carbon concentration. #plantscience @natplants.nature.com www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A bottom-up view of carbon concentration. #plantscience @natplants.nature.com www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Mechanistic insights into CO2-concentrating mechanisms using a synthetic minimal pyrenoid - Nature Plants
Despite substantial research into the architecture and biology of the pyrenoid, the fundamental biochemistry of these organelles remains unclear. In particular, the mechanism of carboxylation enhancem...
www.nature.com
August 21, 2026 at 9:24 AM
🧬🌱 Synthetic pyrenoids show EPYC1-Rubisco condensates enhance carboxylation through partitioning, not enzyme modification. EPYC1 evolution appears shaped by this function.
A bottom-up view of carbon concentration. #plantscience @natplants.nature.com www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A bottom-up view of carbon concentration. #plantscience @natplants.nature.com www.nature.com/articles/s41...
From seawater to pyrenoid – The molecular architecture of the diatom CO2-concentrating mechanism academic.oup.com/plphys/artic... @plantphys.bsky.social
Validate User
academic.oup.com
August 17, 2026 at 1:35 PM
From seawater to pyrenoid – The molecular architecture of the diatom CO2-concentrating mechanism academic.oup.com/plphys/artic... @plantphys.bsky.social
From seawater to pyrenoid - The molecular architecture of the diatom CO2-concentrating mechanism https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42605533/
August 17, 2026 at 11:00 AM
From seawater to pyrenoid - The molecular architecture of the diatom CO2-concentrating mechanism https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42605533/
Bottom-up reconstruction of synthetic pyrenoids provides insights into the mechanisms and evolution of carbon concentration by EPYC1 proteins
#photosynthesis #evolution #plants
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#photosynthesis #evolution #plants
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Bottom-up reconstruction of synthetic pyrenoids provides insights into the mechanisms and evolution of carbon concentration by EPYC1 proteins - Nature Plants
This study shows that the structural protein essential pyrenoid component 1 (EPYC1) and the enzyme Rubisco are sufficient to assemble into pyrenoid-like structures that are functionally active and sho...
www.nature.com
August 16, 2026 at 5:34 PM
Bottom-up reconstruction of synthetic pyrenoids provides insights into the mechanisms and evolution of carbon concentration by EPYC1 proteins
#photosynthesis #evolution #plants
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#photosynthesis #evolution #plants
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
-concentrating mechanisms using a synthetic minimal pyrenoid
->Nature | More on "Synthetic pyrenoid carbon concentration mechanisms" at BigEarthData.ai
->Nature | More on "Synthetic pyrenoid carbon concentration mechanisms" at BigEarthData.ai
-concentrating mechanisms using a synthetic minimal pyrenoid
Barrett, J. et al. A promiscuous mechanism to phase separate eukaryotic carbon fixation in the green lineage. Nat. Plants 10, 1801–1813 (2024). This paper describes a range of different IDPs that form pyrenoids. Freeman Rosenzweig, E. S. et al. The eukaryotic CO2-concentrating organelle is liquid-like and exhibits dynamic reorganization. Cell 171, 148–162.e19 (2017). This paper is, to our knowledge, the first to show the condensate-like behaviour of the pyrenoid. Shimakawa, G. et al. Diatom pyrenoids are encased in a protein shell that enables efficient CO2 fixation. Cell 187, 5919–5934.e19 (2024). This article reports that pyrenoid architecture differs between diatoms and green algae. He, S. et al. The structural basis of Rubisco phase separation in the pyrenoid. Nat. Plants 6, 1480–1490 (2020). This paper reports the in vitro reconstitution, interaction motifs and structure of the pyrenoid matrix...
www.nature.com
August 15, 2026 at 11:50 AM
🧬 What if we could rebuild nature's CO2-concentrating machinery from scratch?
In my research in the Erb Lab, just published in Nature Plants, we reconstructed synthetic pyrenoids to understand how algae concentrate CO₂ for photosynthesis. 🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Let me break it down: 🧵👇
In my research in the Erb Lab, just published in Nature Plants, we reconstructed synthetic pyrenoids to understand how algae concentrate CO₂ for photosynthesis. 🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Let me break it down: 🧵👇
Bottom-up reconstruction of synthetic pyrenoids provides insights into the mechanisms and evolution of carbon concentration by EPYC1 proteins - Nature Plants
This study shows that the structural protein essential pyrenoid component 1 (EPYC1) and the enzyme Rubisco are sufficient to assemble into pyrenoid-like structures that are functionally active and sho...
www.nature.com
August 15, 2026 at 7:40 AM
🧬 What if we could rebuild nature's CO2-concentrating machinery from scratch?
In my research in the Erb Lab, just published in Nature Plants, we reconstructed synthetic pyrenoids to understand how algae concentrate CO₂ for photosynthesis. 🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Let me break it down: 🧵👇
In my research in the Erb Lab, just published in Nature Plants, we reconstructed synthetic pyrenoids to understand how algae concentrate CO₂ for photosynthesis. 🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Let me break it down: 🧵👇
👏 I am really grateful for all the support and the possibilities in the Erb Lab! Heartfelt thanks to all co-authors and helping hands! Full paper www.nature.com/articles/s41... + briefing doi.org/10.1038/s414...
#Photosynthesis #SyntheticBiology #ClimateTech #Biochemistry #NaturePlants #CO2Capture
#Photosynthesis #SyntheticBiology #ClimateTech #Biochemistry #NaturePlants #CO2Capture
Bottom-up reconstruction of synthetic pyrenoids provides insights into the mechanisms and evolution of carbon concentration by EPYC1 proteins - Nature Plants
This study shows that the structural protein essential pyrenoid component 1 (EPYC1) and the enzyme Rubisco are sufficient to assemble into pyrenoid-like structures that are functionally active and sho...
www.nature.com
August 15, 2026 at 7:40 AM
👏 I am really grateful for all the support and the possibilities in the Erb Lab! Heartfelt thanks to all co-authors and helping hands! Full paper www.nature.com/articles/s41... + briefing doi.org/10.1038/s414...
#Photosynthesis #SyntheticBiology #ClimateTech #Biochemistry #NaturePlants #CO2Capture
#Photosynthesis #SyntheticBiology #ClimateTech #Biochemistry #NaturePlants #CO2Capture
🌿 Photosynthesis is inefficient. Rubisco - the enzyme that fixes CO₂ - is notoriously slow and gets confused by oxygen.
Green algae solved this with the pyrenoid: a liquid organelle that concentrates CO₂ around Rubisco.
But how does this actually work at the molecular level? And how did it evolve?
Green algae solved this with the pyrenoid: a liquid organelle that concentrates CO₂ around Rubisco.
But how does this actually work at the molecular level? And how did it evolve?
August 15, 2026 at 7:40 AM
🌿 Photosynthesis is inefficient. Rubisco - the enzyme that fixes CO₂ - is notoriously slow and gets confused by oxygen.
Green algae solved this with the pyrenoid: a liquid organelle that concentrates CO₂ around Rubisco.
But how does this actually work at the molecular level? And how did it evolve?
Green algae solved this with the pyrenoid: a liquid organelle that concentrates CO₂ around Rubisco.
But how does this actually work at the molecular level? And how did it evolve?
🕰️ Using ancestral sequence reconstruction, they "resurrected" ancient EPYC1 proteins from millions of years ago.
Surprise: even ancestral EPYC1s could form functional condensates!
This suggests pyrenoid-like structures provided evolutionary advantages long before modern complex pyrenoids existed.
Surprise: even ancestral EPYC1s could form functional condensates!
This suggests pyrenoid-like structures provided evolutionary advantages long before modern complex pyrenoids existed.
August 15, 2026 at 7:40 AM
🕰️ Using ancestral sequence reconstruction, they "resurrected" ancient EPYC1 proteins from millions of years ago.
Surprise: even ancestral EPYC1s could form functional condensates!
This suggests pyrenoid-like structures provided evolutionary advantages long before modern complex pyrenoids existed.
Surprise: even ancestral EPYC1s could form functional condensates!
This suggests pyrenoid-like structures provided evolutionary advantages long before modern complex pyrenoids existed.
🔬 We took a bottom-up approach: • We fused EPYC1 proteins (the key pyrenoid component) to a simple bacterial Rubisco • We tested many different intrinsically disordered proteins • Only EPYC1 and its homologues triggered phase separation
Result: "synthetic pyrenoids" formed spontaneously!
Result: "synthetic pyrenoids" formed spontaneously!
August 15, 2026 at 7:40 AM
🔬 We took a bottom-up approach: • We fused EPYC1 proteins (the key pyrenoid component) to a simple bacterial Rubisco • We tested many different intrinsically disordered proteins • Only EPYC1 and its homologues triggered phase separation
Result: "synthetic pyrenoids" formed spontaneously!
Result: "synthetic pyrenoids" formed spontaneously!
Bottom-up reconstruction of synthetic pyrenoids provides insights into the mechanisms and evolution of carbon concentration by EPYC1 proteins www.nature.com/articles/s41... @natplants.nature.com
Bottom-up reconstruction of synthetic pyrenoids provides insights into the mechanisms and evolution of carbon concentration by EPYC1 proteins - Nature Plants
This study shows that the structural protein essential pyrenoid component 1 (EPYC1) and the enzyme Rubisco are sufficient to assemble into pyrenoid-like structures that are functionally active and sho...
www.nature.com
August 14, 2026 at 1:59 PM
Bottom-up reconstruction of synthetic pyrenoids provides insights into the mechanisms and evolution of carbon concentration by EPYC1 proteins www.nature.com/articles/s41... @natplants.nature.com