Chloroplast biogenesis and stress tolerance

植物和藻类利用阳光和大气中的二氧化碳来养活自己，并间接地养活食物链中的所有其他生物。 它们通过光合作用做到这一点，这一过程发生在它们细胞内称为叶绿体的专门隔间中。本申请中提出的研究将探索叶绿体内部组织的具体方面以及叶绿体是如何组装的。一个问题是关于光合作用中进行光能利用反应的机器在哪里组装的。 另一个问题涉及叶绿体如何管理称为信使RNA的信息携带分子。我们将探索叶绿体中与动物（包括人类）细胞中的隔间非常相似的专门隔间。第三个问题涉及叶绿体如何刺激某些蛋白质的合成以响应光。叶绿体用一种叫做核糖体的分子机器制造蛋白质。我们将探索核糖体在光的作用下被激活的可能性，这种激活是通过掺入一种特定的必需核糖体成分来实现的，而这种成分又在黑暗中被去除，从而使它们重新排列。为了研究这些问题，我们使用了一种相对简单的模式生物，它很容易在实验室中生长和操作：单细胞藻类，衣原体。我们对这些藻类细胞叶绿体的了解可能会帮助研究人员开发出更高产和抗应激的农业植物。叶绿体和人类细胞之间惊人的相似之处与细胞如何科普压力和调节基因有关。衣原体的叶绿体也是一个非常高产的工厂。它可以通过光合作用产生氢气。这是一种正在开发的替代能源。 衣原体细胞中的叶绿体也可以有效地生产疫苗，药物和其他有用的分子，既安全又便宜。这些藻类细胞告诉我们一些关于所有细胞如何工作的重要事情，并刺激了加拿大的生物技术发展。

Plant and algae use sunlight and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to feed themselves and, indirectly, all other organisms in the food chain. They do this through photosynthesis, a process that occurs in specialized compartments within their cells called chloroplasts. The research proposed in this application will explore specific aspects of the internal organization of chloroplasts and how chloroplasts are assembled. One question concerns where the assembly occurs of the machinery that carryout the light-utilizing reactions of photosynthesis. Another question concerns how the chloroplast manages information-carrying molecules called messenger RNAs. We will explore specialized compartments in chloroplasts that closely resemble compartments in the cells of animals, including humans. The third question relates to how chloroplasts stimulate the synthesis of certain proteins in response to light. Chloroplasts make proteins with a molecular machine called the ribosome. We will explore the possibility that ribosomes are activated in response to light by the incorporation of a specific essential ribosome component, which in turn is removed in the dark, to inactivate them. To study these questions, we use a relatively simple model organism that is easy to grow and manipulate in the laboratory: the single-celled algae, Chlamydomonas. What we learn about the chloroplast of these algae cells, will probably help researchers develop more productive and stress resistant agricultural plants. The surprising similarities between chloroplasts and human cells are related to how cells cope with stress and regulate their genes. The chloroplast of Chlamydomonas is also a remarkably productive factory. It can produce hydrogen gas using photosynthesis. This is being explored as an alternative energy source. The chloroplast in Chlamydomonas cells can also efficiently produce vaccines, drugs, and other useful molecules, both safely and cheaply. These algae cells are telling us some important things about how all cells work and stimulating biotechnological developments in Canada.