Evolution and significance of the Lon gene family in Arabidopsis organelle biogenesis and energy metabolism.

ABSTRACT: Lon is the first identified ATP-dependent protease highly conserved across all kingdoms. Model plant species Arabidopsis thaliana has a small Lon gene family of four members. Although these genes share common structural features, they have distinct properties in terms of gene expression profile, subcellular targeting and substrate recognition motifs. This supports the notion that their functions under different environmental conditions are not necessarily redundant. This article intends to unravel the biological role of Lon proteases in energy metabolism and plant growth through an evolutionary perspective. Given that plants are sessile organisms exposed to diverse environmental conditions and plant organelles are semi-autonomous, it is tempting to suggest that Lon genes in Arabidopsis are

SUBMITTER: Rigas S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3990055 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature