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PMID: 2092038 Published · ppublish English Journal Article Review

Current views on chloroplast protein import and hypotheses on the origin of the transport mechanism.

Journal of bioenergetics and biomembranes ·Vol. 22 ·No. 6 ·1990-12-00 ·Pages 789-810

Archer EK, Keegstra K

Abstract

Most chloroplastic proteins are synthesized as precursors in the cytosol prior to their transport into chloroplasts. These precursors are generally synthesized in a form that is larger than the mature form found inside chloroplasts. The extra amino acids, called transit peptides, are present at the amino terminus. The transit peptide is necessary and sufficient to recognize the chloroplast and induce movement of the attached protein across the envelope membranes. In this review, we discuss the primary and secondary structure of transit peptides, describe what is known about the import process, and present some hypotheses on the evolutionary origin of the import mechanism.

MeSH Terms
Amino Acid Sequence Biological Evolution Biological Transport Carrier Proteins/chemistry,metabolism Chloroplasts/metabolism Models, Biological Molecular Sequence Data Peptides/chemistry,metabolism Plant Proteins/metabolism Protein Conformation Protein Precursors/metabolism Protein Sorting Signals/chemistry,metabolism
Chemicals
Carrier Proteins Peptides Plant Proteins Protein Precursors Protein Sorting Signals
Authors & Affiliations
2 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Archer E K
Department of Biology, Trinity College, Hartford, Connecticut 06106.
Keegstra K
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Article Info
Journal
Journal of bioenergetics and biomembranes
Abbr.
J Bioenerg Biomembr
ISSN
0145-479X
DOI
10.1007/BF00786931
Published
1990-12-00
Pages
789-810
Language
English
Region
United States
NLM ID
7701859
Subset
IM
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1007/BF00786931 View journal details
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