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RuBisCo activase is present in the pyrenoid of green algae

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Summary

RuBisCo activase catalyzes the activation and maintains the activated state of the photosynthetic enzyme ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCo, EC 4.1.1.39). We employed antisera prepared against the RuBisCo holoenzyme purified from tobacco and RuBisCo activase isolated from spinach to determine the localization of these proteins in leaves of C3-type higher plants and green algae. In leaves ofVicia faba, both RuBisCo activase and RuBisCo are distributed throughout the chloroplast stroma. In contrast, RuBisCo activase and RuBisCo are predominantly localized to the pyrenoid in the green algaeChlamydomonas reinhardtii andColeochaete scutata. The co-immunolocalization of RuBisCo activase and RuBisCo to the pyrenoid in these two green algal species suggests that pyrenoid-localized RuBisCo is catalytically competent. We conclude that the pyrenoid functions as a unique metabolic compartment of the chloroplast in which the reactions of the photosynthetic carbon reduction pathway are initiated.

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Abbreviations

RuBisCo:

ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase

RuBP:

ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate

Pipes:

1,4-piperazinedi-ethanesulfonic acid

BSA:

bovine serum albumin

PBS:

phosphate-buffered saline

TBS:

Tris-buffered saline

IgG:

immunoglobulin G

Ci :

inorganic carbon

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, McGill University, 1205, avenue Docteur Penfield, H3A 1B1, Montréal, Québec, Canada

    R. M. L. McKay & Sarah P. Gibbs

  2. Southern Weed Science Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Stoneville, Mississippi

    K. C. Vaughn

Authors
  1. R. M. L. McKay
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  2. Sarah P. Gibbs
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  3. K. C. Vaughn
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McKay, R.M.L., Gibbs, S.P. & Vaughn, K.C. RuBisCo activase is present in the pyrenoid of green algae. Protoplasma 162, 38–45 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01403899

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01403899

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