Oded Béjà

The bacterial schizorhodopsins: novel light-driven inward proton pumps from Antarctic Minisyncoccota (Patescibacteria) and cyanobacteria, with implications for the proton-pumping mechanism

The paper identifies and characterizes two novel bacterial schizorhodopsins from Antarctic sources, demonstrating their inward proton-pumping activity and revealing distinct evolutionary and functional features.

Light-harvesting by antenna-containing xanthorhodopsin from an Antarctic cyanobacterium

The paper identifies widespread xanthorhodopsin genes in cyanobacteria and characterizes a unique variant from an Antarctic cyanobacterium that binds hydroxylated lutein, enhancing light-harvesting efficiency in extreme environments.

Oceanic cyanobacterial photosynthesis is negatively affected by viral NblA proteins

This study shows that cyanophage NblA proteins negatively affect oceanic cyanobacterial photosynthesis by accelerating infection, degrading the phycobilisome, and reducing light harvesting efficiency.

Apusomonad rhodopsins, a new family of ultraviolet to blue light absorbing rhodopsin channels

The paper identifies a new family of rhodopsin channels in apusomonads that absorb ultraviolet to blue light and function as anion-selective channels involved in photoavoidance.

Functional characterization of red-shifted rhodopsin channels from giant viruses explored by a machine-learning model for long-wavelength optogenetics

The paper uses a machine-learning model to predict red-shifted channelrhodopsin variants, identifying ChR024 with a maximum absorption wavelength of ~578 nm for optogenetics.

Light-harvesting by antenna-containing rhodopsins in pelagic Asgard archaea

The paper reports light energy transfer from hydroxylated carotenoids to heimdallarchaeial rhodopsins in marine archaea, showing light-harvesting capabilities in archaea similar to bacterial rhodopsins.

The roles of an extended N-terminal region and ETD motif in a pump-like cation channelrhodopsin discovered in a lake microbiome

This paper characterizes HulaCCR1, a novel BCCR from Lake Hula, showing the ETD motif and extended N/C-termini affect spectral tuning, gating, and membrane localization.

WiChR, a highly potassium selective channelrhodopsin for low-light two-photon neuronal inhibition

The paper identifies a highly potassium-selective channelrhodopsin (WiChR) that enables efficient neuronal inhibition through two-photon optogenetics under low-light conditions.