Muroplasts are the photosynthetic organelles of Glau- cocystophyte algae and are the only members of the so-called “glaucophyte” lineage of plastids (see Chapter 4).

What is Muroplast?

Muroplasts are the photosynthetic organelles of Glau- cocystophyte algae and are the only members of the so-called “glaucophyte” lineage of plastids (see Chapter 4).

Are glaucophytes cyanobacteria?

The glaucophytes, also referred to as glaucocystophytes or glaucocystids, are a tiny group of freshwater algae. They are distinguished mainly by the presence of cyanelles, primitive chloroplasts which closely resemble cyanobacteria and retain a thin peptidoglycan wall between their two membranes.

What features do Glaucophyte Cyanelles have in common with cyanobacteria?

The plastids of glaucophytes, usually called as cyanelles, are thought as “living fossils“39 because the cyanelles keep several features of cyanobacteria such as PBS for peripheral antenna40, lack of membrane-intrinsic light-harvesting chlorophyll protein complexes (LHCs)41, peptidoglycan wall42 and carboxysomes.

What are the pigments found in Glaucophyta?

pigment chlorophyll a
Glaucophytes contain the photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll a. Along with red algae and cyanobacteria, they harvest light via phycobilisomes, structures consisting largely of phycobiliproteins.

Can chloroplasts grow back?

A complete recovery of normal chloroplast structure occurred only after several weeks of exponential growth. The entire population greened in the absence of acetate constantly showed normal chloroplasts with perfectly reassociated thylakoids and clear partitions.

Are glaucophytes microscopic?

The glaucophytes are a group of microscopic blue-green algae found in freshwater, and only 13 species are known, none of which is common. They have been little studied, even though some scientists have suggested they may be the most similar to the original algae that first incorporated a cyanobacterium.

What makes glaucophytes unique?

One of the distinct features of glaucophytes is a chloroplast with a peptidoglycan layer, which indicates a possible remnant of the endosymbiotic origin of plastids from cyanobacteria.

Are glaucophytes bacteria?

Remarkably, the plastids of glaucophytes also retain a vestige of the bacterial peptidoglycan cell wall between inner and outer plastid membranes (Löffelhardt and Bohnert, 1994; Jackson et al., 2015).

Why is chloroplast bad?

In plants, chloroplasts can accumulate high levels of toxic singlet oxygen, a reactive oxygen species formed during photosynthesis.

What can go wrong with chloroplast?

In stressful conditions such as drought and high temperature, a plant cell’s chloroplasts can become damaged and produce harmful reactive oxygen species (ROS).

Is Archaeplastida multicellular?

Most are seaweeds, being multicellular and marine. Their red colour comes from phycobiliproteins, used as accessory pigments in light capture for photosynthesis.

Is Unikonta multicellular?

General Characteristics and structures – This clade is the largest and most complex multicellular algae. They get their color from the brown or olive color (pigments: carotene, fucoxanthin) in their plastids.

What type of algae is glaucocystophytes?

Glaucophyta (glaucophytes, glaucocystophytes, or glaucocystids) are a small group of freshwater algae. Glaucophyta, along with Rhodophyta (red algae), green algae (divisions Charophyta and Chlorophyta) and the land plants (Viridiplantae) form the Archaeplastida.

What is the relationship between red algae green algae and glaucophytes?

Together with the red algae (Rhodophyta) and the green algae plus land plants ( Viridiplantae or Chloroplastida), they form the Archaeplastida. However, the relationships among the red algae, green algae and glaucophytes are unclear, in large part due to limited study of the glaucophytes.

What is a glaucophyte in biology?

Glaucophyte algae (Phylum Glaucophyta) are unicellular freshwater algae, and are thought to resemble a very ancient ancestor of plants. Study of these organisms gives us clues to the origin of photosynthesis within Archaeplastida.

Why are glaucophytes of interest to biologists studying the development of chloroplasts?

The glaucophytes are of interest to biologists studying the development of chloroplasts because some studies suggest they may be similar to the original algal type that led to green plants and red algae in that they may be basal Archaeplastida. Unlike red and green algae, glaucophytes only have asexual reproduction.