HSP70A promotes the photosynthetic activity of marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum under high temperature

SUMMARY With global climate change, the high‐temperature environment has severely impacted the community structure and phenotype of marine diatoms. Phaeodactylum tricornutum, a model species of marine diatom, is sensitive to high temperature, which grow slowly under high temperature. However, the regulatory mechanism of P. tricornutum in response to high‐temperature is still unclear. In this study, we found that the expression level of the HSP70A in the wild type (WT) increased 28 times when exposed to high temperature (26°C) for 1 h, indicating that HSP70A plays a role in high temperature in P. tricornutum. Furthermore, overexpression and interference of HSP70A have great impact on the exponential growth phase of P. tricornutum under 26°C. Moreover, the results of Co‐immunoprecipitation (Co‐IP) suggested that HSP70A potentially involved in the correct folding of the photosynthetic system‐related proteins (D1/D2), preventing aggregation. The photosynthetic activity results demonstrated that overexpression of HSP70A improves non‐photochemical quenching (NPQ) activity under high‐temperature stress. These results reveal that HSP70A regulates the photosynthetic activity of P. tricornutum under high temperatures. This study not only helps us to understand the photosynthetic activity of marine diatoms to high temperature but also provides a molecular mechanism for HSP70A in P. tricornutum under high‐temperature stress. Significance Statement HSP70A in diatoms can bind to proteins in the photosystem at high temperatures, as a molecular chaperone to aid in proper protein folding and prevent degradation. Overexpression of HSP70A can enhance the photosynthetic activity of diatoms under high‐temperature stress, filling a gap in our knowledge.