Frataxin Is Localized to Both the Chloroplast and Mitochondrion and Is Involved in Chloroplast Fe-S Protein Function in Arabidopsis.

ABSTRACT: Frataxin plays a key role in eukaryotic cellular iron metabolism, particularly in mitochondrial heme and iron-sulfur (Fe-S) cluster biosynthesis. However, its precise role has yet to be elucidated. In this work, we studied the subcellular localization of Arabidopsis frataxin, AtFH, using confocal microscopy, and found a novel dual localization for this protein. We demonstrate that plant frataxin is targeted to both the mitochondria and the chloroplast, where it may play a role in Fe-S cluster metabolism as suggested by functional studies on nitrite reductase (NIR) and ferredoxin (Fd), two Fe-S containing chloroplast proteins, in AtFH deficient plants. Our results indicate that frataxin deficiency alters the normal functioning of chloroplasts by affecting the levels of Fe, chlorophyll, and

SUBMITTER: Turowski VR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4636843 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature