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Transglutaminases and their substrates in kinetin-stimulated etioplast-to-chloroplast transformation in cucumber cotyledons

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Abstract

In the light of our previous work, we know that there is a relationship between bound polyamines and the chloroplast differentiation process. This relationship may represent an important component of the process and be part of the mechanism of kinetin action, which stimulates chloroplast differentiation. To clarify the nature of the binding of polyamines to chloroplast structures, the possible involvement of transglutaminases in kinetin-stimulated chloroplast photodevelopment was investigated. Immunodetection of transglutaminases revealed bands at 77, 50 and 30 kDa both in etioplasts and chloroplasts. The data indicated a positive correlation between enzyme level and activity. It also demonstrated the regulation of transglutaminase protein expression by kinetin. The suborganellar location of transglutaminases by electron microscopy showed that the enzyme is peculiarly localised, mainly in pro-thylakoids and appressed grana thylakoids. The data corroborated that spermidine post-translational modification of certain plastid proteins of 58, 29, 26 and 12 kDa occurred. The results we obtained suggest that transglutaminases take part in the formation of the chloroplast structure via a mechanism whereby polyamines bind to their protein substrates. These findings about the effect of kinetin on conjugation provide a new contribution to the understanding of the mechanism of kinetin action on etioplast-to chloroplast transformation.

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Abbreviations

LHCPII:

light-harvesting chlorophyll a/b complex protein

PA:

polyamine

PSII:

photosystem II

Put:

putrescine

Spd:

spermidine

Spm:

spermine

TGases:

transglutaminases

DMC, N’:

N’-dimethylcasein

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Acknowledgements

The author is very indebted to Prof. Donatella Serafini-Fracassini and her co-workers from Bologna University for methodological support, to Agnieszka Kazikowska for the processing of the figures and to Heidi Nicholl of City University, London for the linguistic correction of the manuscript.

This work was partly supported by the Polish State Committee for Scientific Research grant number 2 PO4C 085 26.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Plant Physiology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Umultowska 89, 61-614, Poznań, Poland

    Ewa Sobieszczuk-Nowicka & Jolanta Legocka

  2. Department of Botany, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Umultowska 89, 61-614, Poznań, Poland

    Magdalena Krzesłowska

Authors
  1. Ewa Sobieszczuk-Nowicka
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  2. Magdalena Krzesłowska
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  3. Jolanta Legocka
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Correspondence to Ewa Sobieszczuk-Nowicka.

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Sobieszczuk-Nowicka, E., Krzesłowska, M. & Legocka, J. Transglutaminases and their substrates in kinetin-stimulated etioplast-to-chloroplast transformation in cucumber cotyledons. Protoplasma 233, 187–194 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00709-008-0002-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00709-008-0002-y

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