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Noriyuki Suetsugu, Masamitsu Wada

Chloroplast photorelocation movement mediated by phototropin family proteins in green plants

Keywords: actin filament(s), chloroplast movement, neochrome, phototropin, phytochrome,

Chloroplasts gather in an area irradiated with weak light to maximize photosynthesis (the accumulation response). They move away from an area irradiated with strong light to minimize damage of the photosynthetic apparatus (the avoidance response). The processes underlying these chloroplast movements can be divided into three parts: photoperception, signal transduction, and the movement of chloroplasts. Photoreceptors for chloroplast movement have been identified recently in various plant species. A blue light receptor phototropin (phot) mediates chloroplast photorelocation movement in the seed plant Arabidopsis thaliana, the fern Adiantum capillus-veneris, the moss Physcomitrella patens and possibly the green alga Mougeotia scalaris. A chimeric photoreceptor between phytochrome and phototropin, neochrome (neo), was found in some advanced ferns and in the green alga M. scalaris. While the mechanism of chloroplast movement is not well understood, it is known that actin filaments play an important role in chloroplast movement. To understand the molecular mechanisms associated with chloroplast movement, several mutants were isolated in A. thaliana (jac1 and chup1) and the corresponding genes cloned. In this review, recent progress in photoreceptor research for chloroplast movement in various plant species and on the possible factors functioning in signal transduction or the regulation of actin filaments identified in A. thaliana is discussed.

Biological Chemistry, Walter de Gruyter

Print ISSN: 1431-6730
Volume: 2007
Pages: -

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