Abstract
Transgenic tobacco plants, expressing the Silene pratensis (white campion) gene for the precursor of plastocyanin, were analysed with respect to the functionality of the gene product. The gene was found to be expressed in all tissues that were examined due to the strong and constitutive cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter. In green tissue the Silene protein was transported into chloroplasts and routed to the chloroplasts lumen, where it was found processed to its mature size. In non-photosynthetic tissue the protein is transported into chromoplasts or leucoplasts. In plants grown in tissue culture the amount of endogenous tobacco plastocyanin was found to be reduced significantly, but the Silene plastocyanin was clearly detectable. When plants were dependent on photosynthesis for growth, due to depletion of sucrose from the medium, still only Silene plastocyanin was present. This strongly suggests that the Silene protein can take over photosynthesis in transgenic tobacco when the endogenous plastocyanin is not present. Silene plastocyanin is considered to be fully functional, since both its transport to the chloroplast and its function in photosynthesis were retained in transgenic tobacco plants.
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