Molecular Mechanism of re-isomerization ofretinal in visual cycle

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Absorption of a photon by visual pigments induces isomerization of 11-cis-retinaldehyde(RAL) chromophore to all-trans-RAL. Here we comparevisual retinoid cycles between different photoreceptors of vertebrates as well as invertebrates. The visual cycle systems in ascidians, the closest living relatives of vertebrates, show an intermediate state between vertebrates and non-chordate invertebrates. The ascidian larva may use retinochrome-like opsin as the major isomerase retinal but RPE65 in asidinan did not isomerase retinal. These results are very interesting in the evolutional standpoints.