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Chloroplasts are specialized organelles where photosynthesis occurs, in a highly structured network of membranes, composed of stacked thylakoids interconnected by lamellae. They possess their own DNA and are able to divide. According to the endosymbiotic theory, they originate from engulfed cyanobacteria.
Thylakoid K+/H+ exchange by KEA3 optimizes photosynthesis during light fluctuations. Here, the authors show that a combination of stromal pH, ATP, ADP and NADP+, NADPH induces structural re-arrangements required for KEA3 regulation in vivo.
Photosystem I (PSI) is one of two large pigment–protein complexes responsible for converting solar energy into chemical energy. This study reveals the previously unknown major PSI assembly pathway in land plants.
The Enter-Doudoroff (ED) pathway is an alternative to glycolysis present in some prokaryotes. Evans et al. show that its dehydratase enzyme, evolved from a branched chain amino acid pathway paralog, acquired a new function through mutations in its active site.
NADP+ is the final electron acceptor for linear electron transfer in photosynthesis. Here, the authors show that the NADP pool size is modulated by its interconversion with NAD via ΔpH regulation in response to varying light conditions.
Targeted editing of mitochondrial and chloroplast genomes has therapeutic, agricultural and environmental potential, but it is challenging owing to inability of transfecting (guide) RNA into the organelles. Recent designs of protein-only, programmable base editors open promising avenues for organellar DNA editing in cell lines, animals and plants.
The chloroplast-to-chromoplast transition, occurring when fruits such as tomato turn from green to red, is critical for plant development and is also important agronomically. Now we see a new route to alter the speed of this transition.
