The researchers María Ángeles Bermúdez Alcántara and Consolación Álvarez Núñez have been two of the winners of the Extraordinary Doctorate Award that the University of Seville grants to the best doctoral theses presented in the 2011-2012 academic year.
Both researchers, linked for years to the Isla de la Cartuja Scientific Research Centre (cicCartuja), have developed their work at the Institute of Plant Biochemistry and Photosynthesis (IBVF), specifically within the research group “Cysteine Metabolism and Signalling” led by the CSIC Scientific Researchers Luis C. Romero González and Cecilia Gotor Martínez.
María Ángeles Bermúdez has been recognised for the discovery and detailed study of a new chloroplastic enzyme in plants, and Consolación Álvarez for research on cysteine-dependent signalling processes in plants.
A new chloroplast enzyme
In her doctoral thesis, María Ángeles Bermúdez has focused on the study of a new protein from the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, which catalyses the synthesis of the metabolite S-sulfocysteine, and which had not been previously described in eukaryotic organisms. In this study, the protein was located in the thylakoid lumen of the chloroplast, and it was shown that its absence produces significant changes in the plant’s phenotype, dependent on the growth light regime. With this research, it was concluded that this protein, although very minor, has an important regulatory function in the chloroplast and, therefore, is essential for its correct functioning. The thesis entitled “Identification of a new chloroplast enzyme with S-sulfocysteine synthase activity essential for chloroplast function in Arabidopsis thaliana” was presented at cicCartuja in late 2011, and was directed by CSIC Scientific Researchers Luis C. Romero González and Cecilia Gotor Martínez. Part of this research received the first cicCartuja-Ebro Foods Research Award in its 2010 edition.
Currently, María Ángeles Bermúdez, PhD in Chemistry, works as a Scientific Researcher in R&D+i at the company ABENGOA NUEVAS TECNOLOGIAS (ABNT), specifically in the development of technology for the production of enzymes used in the hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass. Before joining the IBVF, she completed a Master’s Degree in Clean Chemistry Technology Research at the University of York (England), and worked at the company GlaxoSmithKline I+D Madrid. During her time at the IBVF, she completed her doctoral thesis with a scholarship from the Junta de Andalucía, and also received a scholarship from the European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO), for a three-month stay in the laboratory of Dr. Philip Mullineaux at the University of Essex.Cysteine signaling
In her doctoral thesis, Consolación Álvarez has investigated in depth the importance of the amino acid cysteine not only as a component of proteins, but also in its role as a regulatory molecule of essential processes for the plant such as the progression of autophagy and responses to pathogen attack. In this study, she has focused on two cytosolic enzymes responsible for the synthesis and degradation of cysteine, demonstrating that they are involved in a coordinated manner in maintaining cysteine homeostasis. Among other findings, she concluded that cysteine is a crucial metabolite during the plant-pathogen interaction. Likewise, the detailed characterization of the protein that catalyzes the degradation of cysteine in the cytosol allowed to demonstrate that this enzyme is responsible for the generation of sulfide for regulatory purposes. Thus, it was concluded that sulfide acts as a signaling molecule that negatively regulates autophagy and modulates the transcriptional profile in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, this being the first research where this regulation of autophagy is described in a eukaryotic organism. The thesis entitled “Cysteine and its contribution to different signaling processes in Arabidopsis thaliana” was presented at cicCartuja at the end of 2011, and was directed by the CSIC contracted doctor Irene García Fernández and the CSIC Scientific Researcher Cecilia Gotor Martínez. Part of this research received the second prize of the cicCartuja-Ebro Foods Research Award in its 2011 edition.
Consolación Álvarez, PhD in Biochemistry, currently works as a Scientific Researcher in R&D&i at the company ABENGOA NUEVAS TECNOLOGIAS (ABNT), but in this case in the development of enzymes for the production of second-generation bioethanol. During her time at the IBVF, she completed her doctoral thesis with a grant from the JAE programme of the CSIC and spent three months in the laboratory of Dr. José León at the Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology of Plants Primo Yufera, Valencia. Consolación Álvarez has received numerous awards, such as the Extraordinary Degree Award from the University of Seville, the San Alberto Magno Award and the Award from the Real Maestranza de Caballería de Sevilla for the best academic record.
