Vacuoles of diatoms

对动物、酵母和陆生植物的溶酶体和液泡进行了深入研究。在这些研究的过程中，很明显，这些隔室不仅具有溶解活性，还有助于许多细胞功能。从细胞生物学的角度来看，这些隔室的产生和分子向空泡和溶酶体的运输代表了重要的问题，这些问题在最先进的方法中得到了深入研究。最近的进展表明，主要的分子和功能的模型之间的差异，这表明在这个主题的不同生物体的研究的重要性。在拟议的项目中，我们想研究硅藻中的液泡状结构。这些生物体属于一个超类群，即chromalveolates，这是关于液泡只有初步的研究。我们的初步工作支持这样的观点，即在这些单细胞生物中存在两种不同的空泡样结构，它们被认为至少具有储存脂质和聚糖的功能。然而，没有描述其他功能。我们最初的GFP融合到潜在的液泡膜蛋白的靶向实验表明，不同的结构可以被标记，其中之一确实是一个空泡样结构，如光和电子显微镜技术的组合所示。此外，我们已经建立了几个区室特异性标记，这将是指示性的空泡样结构的靶向机制的研究。这些机制将在一个组合的方法，其中针对两个不同的液泡状结构的硅藻的膜蛋白的靶向信号进行研究。此外，我们还想研究其中一个空泡样结构的起源。我们期望从我们的工作不仅是一个分子表征的两个不同的液泡状结构的硅藻，但也有新的见解细胞内蛋白质靶向的机制，在不同的，基本的特征舱室在分子可访问的chromalveolate模型系统。所有的发现将在进化的角度进行平行研究，旨在提供硅藻进化的新方面。也许，我们的工作可能会影响生物技术的应用，提供新的重组蛋白质或纤维的存储隔间。

Lysosomes and vacuoles of animals, yeast and land plants are intensively studied. In the course of these studies it became clear that these compartments have more than lytic activities and contribute to many cellular functions. From a cell biological view, the generation of these compartments and trafficking of molecules to vacuoles and lysosomes represent important issues, which are intensively studied in state-of-the-art approaches. Recent progress showed major molecular and functional differences between the models, indicating the importance of research on different organisms in this topic. In the proposed project we would like to investigate vacuolar-like structures in diatoms. These organisms belong to a supergroup, the chromalveolates, which is in respect to vacuoles only rudimentary studied. Our preliminary work supports the view that two different vacuolar-like structures are present in these unicellular organisms, which are supposed to have at least functions in storage of lipids and glycans. However, other functions are not described. Our initial targeting experiments with GFP fused to potential vacuolar membrane proteins showed that different structures can be labeled; one of these is indeed one of the vacuolar-like structures as showed by the combination of light and electron microscopically techniques. In addition we have established several compartment-specific markers, which will be indicative to study targeting mechanisms to vacuolar-like structures. These mechanisms will be studied in a combinatorial approach, in which the targeting signals of membrane proteins directed to the two different vacuolar-like structures of diatoms are studied. In addition we would like to investigate the origin of one of the vacuolar like structures. We expect from our work not only a molecular characterization of the two different vacuolar-like structures of a diatom, but also new insights into the mechanisms of intracellular protein targeting across the different, rudimentary characterized compartments in a molecular accessible chromalveolate model system. All of the findings will be studied in parallel in an evolutionary view with the aim to provide new aspects of the evolution of diatoms. Perspectively, our work might influence biotechnological applications by providing new storage compartments for recombinant proteins or fibers.