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Letter

Nature Cell Biology 10, 1456–1462 (1 December 2008) | doi:10.1038/ncb1805

An H+ P-ATPase on the tonoplast determines vacuolar pH and flower colour

Walter Verweij , Cornelis Spelt , Gian-Pietro Di Sansebastiano , Joop Vermeer , Lara Reale , Francesco Ferranti , Ronald Koes & Francesca Quattrocchio

The regulation of pH in cellular compartments is crucial for intracellular trafficking of vesicles and proteins and the transport of small molecules, including hormones. In endomembrane compartments, pH is regulated by vacuolar H+-ATPase (V-ATPase), which, in plants, act together with H+-pyrophosphatases (PPase), whereas distinct P-type H+-ATPases in the cell membrane control the pH in the cytoplasm and energize the plasma membrane.