Abstract
The Scenedesmus obliquus mutant C-6D forms untypical poly-cis carotenes and lacks cyclic carotenoids when grown heterotrophically in the dark. After transfer to light, a very fast formation of usual all-trans carotenoids is observed leading to a phenotype very similar to the wild-type. Carotene analysis and quantitative kinetics of carotenoid changes after illumination in the presence of inhibitors which inhibit the three enzymes involved in carotene conversion showed isomerization of poly-cis carotenes, especially pro-ξ-carotene, to all-trans isomers. This result and consequently photoisomerization of pro-ξ-carotene in solution demonstrated that photoisomerization is the light-dependent mechanism leading to all-trans carotenoids in illuminated cultures. Now the different phenotypes of Scenedesmus C-6D can be explained by a single mutation of phytoene desaturase when photoisomerization of poly-cis carotenes is considered.
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Abbreviations
- CPTA:
-
2-(4-chlorophenylthio)-triethylamine HCL
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Sandmann, G. Light-dependent switch from formation of poly-cis carotenes to all-trans carotenoids in the Scenedesmus mutant C-6D. Arch. Microbiol. 155, 229–233 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00252205
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00252205