Temporal and Spatial Regulation of the Putative Class II H+ Transporter of the Chara Plasma Membrane

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This project is focused on the regulatory cascade that culminates in the activation of ion transport in the giant internodal cell of Chara corallina. Upon illumination, ion transport activity in these cells rapidly becomes spatially segregated into alternating bands of what appears to be proton influx and efflux. Experiments are aimed at discerning the potential role of protein dephosphorylation in the activation of the transport system and in the rapid spatial segregation of ion movement activities. %%% The movement of ions across the plasma membrane of plant cells is under strict regulatory control and is responsive to a variety of extracellular signals. The giant internodal cell from Chara corallina provides a unique model system for the study of these regulatory cascades because ion movement is triggered by light and appears to be coupled directly to photosynthetic activity. The intermediary steps in signal transduction are not well understood and are part of the focus for this project. The transduction of these signals can provide important clues to mechanisms by which plant cells regulate transport at the plasma membrane.