Role of membrane glycerolipids in photosynthesis, thylakoid biogenesis and chloroplast development

• Published in: Journal of plant research Vol. 129; no. 4; pp. 565 - 580
• Main Author: Kobayashi, Koichi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Tokyo Springer Japan 01.07.2016; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Arabidopsis thaliana; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biosynthesis; Chloroplasts; Current Topics in Plant Research; Cyanobacteria; Galactolipids; Gene expression; Life Sciences; Lipid metabolism; Lipids; Machinery and equipment; Membrane Lipids - chemistry; Membrane Lipids - metabolism; Membranes; Metabolism; Nuclei; Organelle Biogenesis; Phosphatidylglycerol; Phospholipids; Photosynthesis; Plant Biochemistry; Plant cells; Plant Cells - metabolism; Plant Ecology; Plant Leaves - metabolism; Plant Physiology; Plant Sciences; Plants (botany); Plastids; Post-translation; Thylakoids - metabolism; Transcription; Thylakoid membrane; Photosynthesis; Chloroplast; Membrane lipid; Arabidopsis thaliana
• ISSN: 0918-9440; 1618-0860
• DOI: 10.1007/s10265-016-0827-y

The lipid bilayer of the thylakoid membrane in plant chloroplasts and cyanobacterial cells is predominantly composed of four unique lipid classes; monogalactosyldiacylglycerol (MGDG), digalactosyldiacylglycerol (DGDG), sulfoquinovosyldiacylglycerol (SQDG) and phosphatidylglycerol (PG). MGDG and DGDG are uncharged galactolipids that constitute the bulk of thylakoid membrane lipids and provide a lipid bilayer matrix for photosynthetic complexes as the main constituents. The glycolipid SQDG and phospholipid PG are anionic lipids with a negative charge on their head groups. SQDG and PG substitute for each other to maintain the amount of total anionic lipids in the thylakoid membrane, with PG having indispensable functions in photosynthesis. In addition to biochemical studies, extensive analyses of mutants deficient in thylakoid lipids have revealed important roles of these lipids in photosynthesis and thylakoid membrane biogenesis. Moreover, recent studies of Arabidopsis thaliana suggest that thylakoid lipid biosynthesis triggers the expression of photosynthesis-associated genes in both the nucleus and plastids and activates the formation of photosynthetic machineries and chloroplast development. Meanwhile, galactolipid biosynthesis is regulated in response to chloroplast functionality and lipid metabolism at transcriptional and post-translational levels. This review summarizes the roles of thylakoid lipids with their biosynthetic pathways in plants and discusses the coordinated regulation of thylakoid lipid biosynthesis with the development of photosynthetic machinery during chloroplast biogenesis.