US-France Cooperative Research: Structural and Functional Study of Thioredoxins

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This award will support collaborate research between Dr. Bob Buchanan, University of California at Berkeley and Dr. M. Miginiac- Maslow, University of Paris-Sud, Orsay. The overall goal of the project is to relate the structure and function of the newly identified extrachloroplastic thioredoxin h of leaves and other plant tissues and of the m-type thioredoxins present in the green eukaryotic alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Theoredoxins are low- molecular-weight proteins that are widely distributed in nature. In pursuing the proposed work, the investigators will identify the structural domains involved in the interaction of thioredoxins with different target enzymes. They plan to perform site-directed mutagenesis experiments to confer different activities (specifici- ties) to the higher plant and algal thioredoxins and convert them to either a more bacterial or animal-like character. These results will provide insight into the structural features that determine the specificity of thioredoxins, not only of plants, but also of animals and bacteria. Research from this study will add fundamental new knowledge to several fields, including biochemistry, medicine and biotechnology. The complementary interests and expertise of the Berkeley and Orsay groups, together with their long-standing record of successful scientific cooperation, will help insure the success of the proposed research.