Nuclear-chloroplast signalling

Chloroplast development and function relies both on structural and on regulatory factors encoded within the nucleus. Recent work has lead to the identification of several nuclear encoded genes that participate in a wide array of chloroplast functions. Characterization of these genes has increased our understanding of the signalling between these two compartments. Accumulating evidence shows that a variety of molecular mechanisms are used for intercompartmental communication and for regulating co-ordinated chloroplast protein expression.