Original Publications and Reviews
Abdelhakim L.O.A., Pleskačová B., Rodriguez-Granados N.Y., Sasidharan R., Perez-Borroto L.S., Sonnewald S., Gruden K., Vothknecht U.C., Teige M., and Panzarová K. (2024)
High Throughput Image-Based Phenotyping for Determining Morphological and Physiological Responses to Single and Combined Stresses in Potato
J. Vis. Exp. (Pending Publication), e66255;
Bleker C., Ramšak Z., Bittner A., Podpečan V., Zagorščak M., Wurzinger B., Baebler Š., Petek M., Križnik M., van Dieren A., Gruber J., Afjehi-Sadat L., Županič A., Teige M., Vothknecht U.C., Gruden K. (2024)
Stress Knowledge Map: A knowledge graph resource for systems biology analysis of plant stress responses
Plant Communications (accepted); doi.org/10.1101/2023.11.28.568332 (bioRxiv preprint)
Bhattacharyya S., Giridhar M., Meier B., Peiter E., Vothknecht U.C. and Chigri F. (2023)
Global transcriptome profiling reveals root-and leaf-specific responses of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) to H2O2
Frontiers in Plant Science; doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2023.1223778
Corti F., Festa M., Stein F., Stevanato P., Siroka J., Navazio L., Vothknecht U.C., Alboresi A., Novák O., Formentin E., Szabò I. (2023)
Comparative analysis of wild-type and chloroplast MCU-deficient plants reveals multiple consequences of chloroplast calcium handling under drought stress
Frontiers in Plant Science; doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2023.1228060
Bittner A., Cieśla A., Gruden K., Lukan T., Mahmud S., Teige M., Vothknecht U.C., Wurzinger B. (2022)
Organelles and phytohormones – a network of interactions in plant stress responses.
Journal of Experimental Botany 21, 7165–7181; https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erac384
Giridhar M., Meier B., Imani J., Kogel K., Peiter E., Vothknecht U.C. and Chigri F. (2022)
Comparative analysis of stress-induced calcium signals in the crop species barley and the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana.
BMC Plant Biology 22, 447; doi.org/10.1186/s12870-022-03820-5
Mahmud S., Ullah C., Kortz A., Bhattacharyya S., Yu P., Gershenzon J. and Vothknecht U.C. (2022)
Constitutive expression of JASMONATE RESISTANT 1 induces molecular changes that prime the plants to better withstand drought.
Plant, Cell & Environment 45, 2906-2922; doi/10.1111/pce.14402
Cortese E., Moscatiello R., Pettiti F., Carraretto L., Baldan B., Frigerio L., Vothknecht U.C., Szabo I., De Stefani D., Brini M., and Navazio L. (2021)
Monitoring calcium handling by the plant endoplasmic reticulum with a low-Ca2+-affinity targeted aequorin reporter.
The Plant Journal 109, 1014-1027; doi.org/10.1111/tpj.15610
Pirayesh N., Giridhar M., Ben Khedher A., Vothknecht U.C. and Chigri F. (2021)
Organellar Calcium Signaling in Plants: An Update.
BBA Molecular Cell Research 1868, 118948; doi.org/10.1016/j.bbamcr.2021.118948
Ugalde J., Fuchs P., Nietzel T., Cutolo E., Homagk M., Vothknecht U.C., Holuigue U.C., Schwarzländer M., Müller-Schüssele S. and Meyer A. (2021)
Chloroplast-derived photo-oxidative stress causes changes in H2O2 and EGSH in other subcellular compartments.
Plant Physiology 186, 125–141; doi.org/10.1093/plphys/kiaa095
Vothknecht U.C. and Szabo I. (2020)
Channels and transporters for inorganic ions in plant mitochondria: prediction and facts.
Mitochondrion 35, 224-233; doi.org/10.1016/j.mito.2020.05.007
Cutolo E., Parvin N., Ruge H., Pirayesh N., Roustan V., Weckwerth W., Teige M., Grieco M., Larosa V. and Vothknecht U.C. (2019)
The High Light Response in Arabidopsis Requires the Calcium Sensor Protein CAS, a Target of STN7- and STN8-Mediated Phosphorylation.
Frontiers in Plant Science; doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2019.00974
Teardo E., Carraretto L., Moscatiello R., Cortese E., Vicario M., Festa M., Maso L., De Bortoli S., Calì T., Vothknecht U.C., Formentin E., Cendron L., Navazio L. and Ildikò Szabò (2019)
A chloroplast-localized mitochondrial calcium uniporter transduces osmotic stress in Arabidopsis.
Nature Plants 5, 581–588; doi: 10.1038/s41477-019-0434-8
Walter J., Selim K.A., Leganés F., Fernández-Piñas F., Vothknecht U.C., Forchhammer K., Aro E.-M. and Gollan P. (2019)
A novel Ca2+-binding protein influences photosynthetic electron transport in Anabaena sp. PCC 7120.
BBA - Bioenergetics 1860, 519-532; doi:10.1016/j.bbabio.2019.04.007
Sello S., Moscatiello R., Mehlmer N., Leonardelli M., Carraretto L., Cortese E., Zanella F.G., Baldan B., Szabò I., Vothknecht U.C.* and Navazio L.* (2018)
Chloroplast Ca2+ Fluxes into and across Thylakoids Revealed by Thylakoid-Targeted Aequorin Probes.
Plant Physiology 177, 38-51; doi.org/10.1104/pp.18.00027
*corresponding authors
Pasquini M., Fermani S., Tedesco D., Sciabolini C., Crozet P., Naldi M., Henri J., Vothknecht U.C., Bertucci C., Lemaire S.D., Zaffagnini M. and Francia F. (2017)
Structural basis for the magnesium-dependent activation of transketolase from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.
BBA - General Subjects 1861, 2132-2145; doi.org/10.1016/j.bbagen.2017.05.021
Parvin N., Carrie C., Pabst I., Läßer A., Laha D., Paul M., Geigenberger P., Heermann R., Jung K., Vothknecht U.C. and Chigri F. (2017)
TOM9.2 Is a calmodulin binding protein critical for TOM complex assembly but not for mitochondrial protein import in Arabidopsis thaliana.
Molecular Plant 10, 575-589; doi.org/10.1016/j.molp.2016.12.012
Ruge H., Flosdorff S., Ebersberger I., Chigri F. and Vothknecht U.C. (2016)
The calmodulin-like proteins AtCML4 and AtCML5 are single-pass membrane proteins targeted to the endomembrane system by an N-terminal signal-anchor sequence.
Journal of Experimental Botany 67, 3985-3996; doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erw101
Sello S., Perotto J., Carraretto L., Szabò I., Vothknecht U.C. and Navazio L. (2016)
Dissecting stimulus-specific Ca2+ signals in amyloplasts and chloroplasts of Arabidopsis thaliana cell suspension cultures.
Journal of Experimental Botany 67, 3965-3974; doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erw038
Lorenz A., Lorenz M., Vothknecht U.C., Niopek-Witz S., Neuhaus E.H. and Haferkamp I. (2015)
In vitro analyses of mitochondrial ATP/phosphate carriers from Arabidopsis thaliana revealed unexpected Ca2+-effects.
BMC Plant Biology 15, 238-254; doi.org/10.1186/s12870-015-0616-0
Rocha A.G., Mehlmer N., Stael S., Mair A., Parvin N., Chigri F., Teige M. and Vothknecht U.C. (2014)
Phosphorylation of Arabidopsis transketolase at Ser-428 provides a potential paradigm for metabolic control of chloroplast carbon metabolism.
Biochemical Journal 458, 313-322; doi.org/10.1042/BJ20130631
Rocha A.G. and Vothknecht U.C. (2013)
Identification of CP12 as a novel calcium-binding protein in chloroplasts.
Plants 2, 530-540; doi.org/10.3390/plants2030530
*Dolze E., *Chigri F., Hoewing T., Hierl G., Isono E., Vothknecht U.C. and Gietl C. (2013)
Calmodulin-like protein AtCML3 mediates dimerization of peroxisomal processing protease AtDEG15 and contributes to normal peroxisome metabolism.
Plant Molecular Biology 83, 607–624; doi.org/10.1007/s11103-013-0112-6
*both authors contributed equally
Zhang L., Kato Y., Otters S., Vothknecht U.C. and Sakamoto W. (2012)
Essential role of VIPP1 in chloroplast envelope maintenance in Arabidopsis.
Plant Cell 24, 3695-3707 (abstract)
Otters S., Braun P., Huber J., Wanner G., Vothknecht U.C. and Chigri F. (2012)
The first alpha-helical domain of the Vesicle Inducing Protein in Plastids 1 promotes oligomerization and lipid binding.
Planta 237, 529-540 (abstract)
Chigri F., Fuchs M., Otters S. and Vothknecht U.C. (2012)
Thylakoid Membrane Formation: Vipp1 and more.
Endocytobiosis and Cell Research 23, 6-10 (abstract)
Hierl G., Vothknecht U.C. and Gietl C. (2012)
Programmed cell death in Ricinus and Arabidopsis: The function of KDEL cysteine peptidases in development.
Physiologia Plantarum 145, 103-113 (abstract)
Rocha A.G and Vothknecht U.C. (2012)
The role of calcium in chloroplasts - an intriguing and unresolved puzzle.
Protoplasma 249 (4), 57-966 (abstract)
Bayer R.G, Stael S., Rocha A.G., Mair A., Vothknecht U.C. and Teige M. (2012)
Chloroplast localised protein kinases – a step forward towards a complete inventory.
Journal of Experimental Botany 63 (4), 1713-1723 (abstract)
Mehlmer N., Parvin N., Hurst C.H., Knight M.R., Teige M. and Vothknecht U.C. (2012)
A toolset of aequorin expression vectors for in planta studies of subcellular calcium concentrations in Arabidopsis thaliana.
Journal of Experimental Botany 63 (4), 1751-1761 (abstract)
Fuchs M., Vothknecht U.C. and Chigri F. (2011)
Calmodulin and Calmodulin-like proteins in Arabidopsis thaliana.
Endocytobiosis and Cell Research 21, 114-121 (abstract)
Chigri F., Flosdorff S., Pilz S., Kölle E., Dolze E., Gietl C. and Vothknecht U.C. (2011)
The Arabidopsis calmodulin-like proteins AtCML30 and AtCML3 are targeted to mitochondria and peroxisomes, respectively.
Plant Molecular Biology 78, 211–222 (abstract)
Stael S., Rocha A.G., Wimberger T., Anrather D., Vothknecht U.C. and Teige M. (2011)
Crosstalk between calcium signalling and protein phosphorylation at the thylakoid membrane.
Journal of Experimental Botany 63 (4), 1725-33 (abstract)
Stael S., Rocha A.G., Robinson A.J., Kmiecik P., Vothknecht U.C. and Teige M. (2011)
Arabidopsis calcium-binding mitochondrial carrier proteins as potential facilitators of mitochondrial ATP-import and plastid SAM-import.
FEBS Letters 585 (24), 3935–3940 (abstract)
Stael S., Wurzinger B., Mair A., Mehlmer N., Vothknecht U.C. and Teige M. (2011)
Plant organellar calcium signalling - an emerging field.
Journal of Experimental Botany 63 (4), 1525-1542 (abstract)
Vothknecht U.C., Otters S., Henning R. and Schneider D. (2011)
Vipp1: A very important protein in plastids!?
Journal of Experimental Botany 63 (4), 1699-1612 (abstract)
Mehlmer N., Sippel C., Pérez Hernández D. and Vothknecht U.C. (2011)
Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis: a new model plant for the isolation of chloroplasts and biochemical studies.
Endocytobiosis and Cell Research 21, 53-59 (abstract)
Chigri F., Sippel C., Kolb M., and Vothknecht U.C. (2009)
Arabidopsis OBG-like GTPase (AtOBGL) is localized in chloroplasts and has an essential function in embryo development.
Molecular Plant 2 (6), 1373-1383 (abstract)
Bussemer J., Chigri F. and Vothknecht U.C. (2009)
AFG1-like protein 1 (AFG1L1) is a calmodulin-binding AAA+-ATPase with a dual localization in chloroplasts and mitochondria.
FEBS Journal 275, 3870-3880 (abstract)
Bussermer J., Vothknecht U.C. and Chigri F. (2009)
Calcium Regulation in Endosymbiotic Organelles of Plants.
Plant Signaling & Behaviours 4, 1-4 (abstract)
Kuhn S., Bussemer J., Chigri F. and Vothknecht U.C. (2009)
Calcium depletion and calmodulin inhibition affect import of nuclear-encoded proteins into plant mitochondria.
Plant Journal 58, 696-704 (abstract)
Aseeva E.,Ossenbühl F., Cho W.K., Sippel C., Stein R., Eichacker L.A., Meurer J., Wanner G., Westhoff P., Soll J. and Vothknecht U.C. (2007)
Vipp1 is required for basic thylakoid membrane formation but not for the assembly of thylakoid protein complexes.
Plant Physiol. et Biochem. 45, 119-128 (abstract)
Martin T., Sharma R., Sippel C., Waegemann K., Soll J. and Vothknecht U.C. (2006)
A protein kinase family in Arabidopsis phosphorylates chloroplast precursor proteins.
J. Biol. Chem. 281, 40216-40223 (abstract)
Chigri F., Hörmann F., Bölter B., Stamp A., Stammers D., Soll J. and Vothknecht U.C. (2006)
Calcium regulation of chloroplast protein translocation is mediated by calmodulin-binding to Tic32.
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 103, 16051-16056 (abstract)
Chigri F., Soll J. and Vothknecht U.C. (2005)
Calcium regulation of chloroplast protein import.
Plant Journal 42, 821-831 (abstract)
Vothknecht U.C. and Soll J. (2005)
Chloroplast membrane transport: Interplay of prokaryotic and eukaryotic traits.
Gene 354, 99-109 (abstract)
Vothknecht U.C. and Soll J. (2005)
Protein Import into Chloroplasts: Who, when, and how?
In: The Structure and Function of Plastids. Wise R.R. and Hoober J.K. (eds.), Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, pp. 53-74
Vothknecht U.C. and Soll J. (2005)
The Protein Import pathway into Chloroplasts: A single tune or variations on a common theme?
In: Plastids. Annual Plant Reviews, Vol 13. Møller S.G. (ed.), Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, pp. 157-179
Aseeva E., Ossenbühl F., Eichacker L.A., Wanner G., Soll J. and Vothknecht U.C. (2004)
Complex formation of Vipp1 depends on its alpha-helical PspA-like domain.
J. Biol. Chem. 279, 35535-35541 (abstract)
Westphal S., Soll J. and Vothknecht U.C. (2003)
Evolution of chloroplast vesicle transport.
Plant Cell Physiol. 44, 217-222 (abstract)
Vothknecht U.C. and Soll J. (2002)
Chloroplast quest: A Journey From the Cytosol into the Chloroplast and Beyond.
Rev. Physiol. Biochem. Pharmacol. 145, 181-221 (abstract)
Westphal S., Soll J. and Vothknecht U.C. (2001)
A vesicle transport system inside chloroplasts.
FEBS Letters 506, 257-261 (abstract)
Westphal S., Heins L., Soll J. and Vothknecht U.C. (2001)
Vipp1 deletion mutant of Synechocystis: A connection between bacterial phage shock and thylakoid biogenesis?.
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 98, 4243-4248 (abstract)
Kroll D., Meierhoff K., Bechtold N., Kinoshita M., Westphal S., Vothknecht U.C., Soll J. and Westhoff P. (2001)
VIPP1, a nuclear gene of Arabidopsis thaliana essential for thylakoid membrane formation.
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 98, 4238-4242 (abstract)
Vothknecht, U.C. and Westhoff P. (2001)
Biogenesis and Origin of Thylakoid Membranes.
Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1541, 91-101 (abstract)
Stathopoulos C., Li T., Longman R., Vothknecht U.C., Becker H.D., Ibba M. and Söll D. (2000)
One polypeptide with two aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase activities.
Science 287, 470-482 (abstract)
Vothknecht U.C. and Soll, J. (2000)
Protein import: the hitchhikers guide into chloroplasts.
Biol. Chem. 381, 887-897 (abstract)
Das R. and Vothknecht U.C. (1999)
Phenylalany-tRNA synthetase from the archaeon Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum is an (αβ)2 heterotetrameric protein.
Biochimie 81, 1037-1039 (abstract)
Li T., Graham D.E., Stathopoulos C., Haney P.J., Kim H.-S., Vothknecht U.C., Kitabatake M., Hong K.-W., Eggertsson G., Curnow A.W., Lin W., Celic I., Whitman W. and Söll D. (1999)
Cysteinyl-tRNA formation: the last puzzle of aminoacyl-tRNA synthesis.
FEBS Letters 462, 302-306 (abstract)
Tumbula D., Vothknecht U.C., Kim, H-S., Ibba M., Min B., Li T., Pelaschier J., Stathopoulos C., Becker H. and Söll D. (1999)
Archaeal Aminoacyl-tRNA Synthesis: Diversity replaces Dogma.
Genetics 152, 1269-1276 (abstract)
Vothknecht, U.C. and Tumbula D. (1999)
Archaea: From genomics to physiology and the origin of life.
Trends in Cell Biology 9, 159-161 (abstract)
*Kim H.-S., *Vothknecht U.C., Hedderich R., Celic I. and Söll D. (1998)
Sequence divergence of Seryl-tRNA Synthetases in Archaea.
J. Bacteriol. 180, 6446-6449 (abstract); *both authors contributed equally
Ibba, M., Morgan, S., Curnow, A.W., Pridmore, D.R., Vothknecht, U.C., Gardner, W., Lin, W., Woese, C.R. and Söll, D. (1997)
A euryarchaeal lysyl-tRNA synthetase: resemblance to class I synthetases.
Science 278, 1119-1122 (abstract)
Vothknecht U.C., Kannangara C.G. and von Wettstein D. (1997)
Barley glutamyl tRNAGlu reductase: Mutations affecting heme inhibition and enzyme activity.
Phytochemistry 47, 513-519 (abstract)
Kannangara C.G., Vothknecht U.C., Hansson M. and von Wettstein D. (1997)
Magnesium chelatase: association with ribosomes and mutant complementation studies identify barley subunit Xantha-G as a functional counterpart of Rhodobacter subunit BchD.
Mol. Gen. Genet. 254, 85-92 (abstract)
Ibba M., Celic I., Curnow A., Kim H-s., Pelaschier J., Tumbula D., Vothknecht U., Woese C. and Söll D. (1997)
Aminoacyl-tRNA synthesis in Archaea.
Nucleic Acids Symposium Series 37, 305-306
Vothknecht U.C., Kannangara C.G. and von Wettstein D. (1996)
Expression of catalytically active barley glutamyl tRNAGlu reductase in Escherichia coli is a fusion protein with glutathione S-transferase.
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 93, 9287-9291 (abstract)
Vothknecht U.C. and Dörnemann D. (1995)
Charging of both, plastid tRNAGln and tRNAGlu with glutamate and subsequent amidation of the misacylated tRNAGln by an glutamyl-tRNA amidotransferase in the unicellular green alga Scenedesmus obliquus, mutant C-2A'.
Z. Naturforsch. 50c, 789-795
Jensen P.E., Willows R.D., Larsen Petersen B., Vothknecht U.C., Stummann B.M., Kannangara C.G., Wettstein D. von and Henningsen K.W. (1995)
Three structural genes for Mg-chelatase subunits in barley : Xantha-f, -g and -h.
Mol. Gen. Genet. 250, 383-394 (abstract)
Vothknecht U.C., Willows R.D. and Kannangara C.G. (1995)
Sinefungin inhibits chlorophyll synthesis by blocking the S-adenosylmethionine: Mg-Protoporphyrin IX O-methyltransferase in greening barley leaves.
Plant Physiology and Biochemistry 33, 759-763
Willows R.D., Vothknecht U.C., Petersen B.L. and Jensen P.E. (1995)
Molecular biological and enzymatic studies confirm that xantha -f, -g and -h mutants of barley are defective in magnesium chelatase.
Barley Gen. Newsl. 24, 4-6
Vothknecht U.C., Senger H. and Dörnemann D. (1994)
Purification and partial characterization of a glutamyl-tRNA synthetase from the unicellular green alga Scenedesmus obliquus.
Planta 192, 256 - 260 (abstract)
Lehrbuch
Böttger A., Vothknecht U.C., Bolle C. and Wolf A. (2018)
Lessons on Caffeine, Cannabis & Co.
In: Learning Materials in Biosciences, 2018, p. 179-203; doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99546-5
Habilitationsschrift
Vothknecht U.C. (2005) Komponenten der Thylakoidbiogenese in Cyanobakterien und Chloroplasten
Invited Audio Presentations
Vothknecht U.C. (2006) Protein Import into Chloroplasts. In: Understanding Chloroplasts. Hoober J.K. (ed.), Henry Stewart Talks Ltd., London