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Photosynthesis in Arabidopsis thaliana Mutants with Reduced Chloroplast Number

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Abstract

We have used a class of Arabidopsis mutants altered in the accumulation and replication of chloroplasts (arc mutants) to investigate the effect of reduced chloroplast number on the photosynthetic competence of leaves. Each of the arc mutants examined (arc3, arc5, and arc6) accumulate only a few (2–15) large chloroplasts per mesophyll cell [K.A. Pyke and R.M. Leech (1992) Plant Physiology 99: 1005–1008]. The increased plastid size maintains a constant plastid to mesophyll cell volume, which has been suggested to compensate for the lower chloroplast number. In fact, we find that reduced chloroplast number has an effect on both the composition and structure of the photosynthetic apparatus, and that each arc mutant has an altered photosynthetic capacity, and we conclude that photosynthetic competence is dependent on proper chloroplast division and development.

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Abbreviations

Arc:

accumulation and replication of chloroplast

Ler :

Landsberg erecta

LHC:

light harvesting complex

NPQ:

non-photochemical quenching

PS I:

Photosystem I

PS II:

Photosystem II

TEM:

transmission electron microscopy

Wass :

Wassilewskijia

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Life Science and Center for the Study of Early Events in Photosynthesis, Arizona State University, P. O. Box 871601, Tempe, AZ, 85287-1601, USA

    Jotham Austin II & Andrew N. Webber

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  1. Jotham Austin II
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  2. Andrew N. Webber
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Correspondence to Andrew N. Webber.

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II, J.A., Webber, A.N. Photosynthesis in Arabidopsis thaliana Mutants with Reduced Chloroplast Number. Photosynth Res 85, 373–384 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11120-005-7708-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11120-005-7708-x

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