Abstract
Analyses of tocopherols in flag leaves of barley cultivated in a field revealed that both alpha-and gamma-tocopherol accumulate with the beginning of senescence. Correspondingly one of the genes expressed during barley leaf senescence is coding for a key enzyme of the biosynthetic pathway leading to tocopherols and plastoquinones. This enzyme, 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase, catalyzes the formation of homogentisate from 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate, a product of the shikimate pathway. It is hypothesized that tocopherols acting as lipophilic antioxidants play an important role in differential stabilization of plastid envelope membranes over thylakoid membranes which become degraded during senescence. A model emphasizing the important function of envelope membranes for senescence associated remobilization of thylakoid lipids is presented.
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Chrost, B., Falk, J., Kernebeck, B., Mölleken, H., Krupinska, K. (1999). Tocopherol Biosynthesis in Senescing Chloroplasts - A Mechanism to Protect Envelope Membranes against Oxidative Stress and a Prerequisite for Lipid Remobilization ?. In: Argyroudi-Akoyunoglou, J.H., Senger, H. (eds) The Chloroplast: From Molecular Biology to Biotechnology. NATO Science Series, vol 64. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4788-0_27
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4788-0_27
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
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