Physical mapping and functional assignment of the geranylgeranyl-bacteriochlorophyll reductase gene, bchP, of Rhodobacter sphaeroides.

ABSTRACT: The bacteriochlorophyll of the purple photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides is esterified with phytol. The presence of this alcohol moiety is essential for the correct assembly of the photosynthetic apparatus. Despite this, and the fact that R. sphaeroides is widely used for the study of structure-function relationships in photosynthesis, the molecular genetics of the steps in which the alcohol is added and modified have not previously been investigated in this organism. Sequencing near the center of the photosynthesis gene cluster has now revealed the existence of an open reading frame encoding a putative 394-amino-acid polypeptide displaying strong homology with the products of a number of genes from other photosynthetic organisms, each proposed to be responsible for the reduc

SUBMITTER: Addlesee HA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC103687 | biostudies-literature | 1999 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature