Mutations in the Arabidopsis gene IMMUTANS cause a variegated phenotype by inactivating a chloroplast terminal oxidase associated with phytoene desaturation.
The immutans (im) mutant of Arabidopsis shows a variegated phenotype comprising albino and green somatic sectors. We have cloned the IM gene by transposon tagging and show that even stable null alleles give rise to a variegated phenotype. The gene product has amino acid similarity to the mitochondrial alternative oxidase. We show that the IM protein is synthesized as a precursor polypeptide that is imported into chloroplasts and inserted into the thylakoid membrane. The albino sectors of im plants contain reduced levels of carotenoids and increased levels of the carotenoid precursor phytoene. The data presented here are consistent with a role for the IM protein as a cofactor for carotenoid desaturation. The suggested terminal oxidase function of IM appears to be essential to prevent photooxidative damage during early steps of chloroplast formation. We propose a model in which IM function is linked to phytoene desaturation and, possibly, to the respiratory activity of the chloroplast.
Carol
P
P
Laboratoire de Génétique Moléculaire des Plantes, Université Joseph Fourier, CNRS UMR 5575, BP 53X, 38041 Grenoble Cedex 09, France. pierre.carol@UJF-grenoble.fr
Stevenson
D
D
Bisanz
C
C
Breitenbach
J
J
Sandmann
G
G
Mache
R
R
Coupland
G
G
Kuntz
M
M
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D001483:Base Sequence; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000378:metabolism*; D002736:Chloroplasts / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics*; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016254:Mutagenesis, Insertional; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000378:metabolism*; D010641:Phenotype; D010858:Pigmentation / Q000235:genetics*; D016415:Sequence Alignment
D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D002338:Carotenoids; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D010088:Oxidoreductases; C405742:IM protein, Arabidopsis; C100185:(all-E) phytoene