The plastid clpP gene may not be essential for plant cell viability
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Updated: Sep 27, 2026

A Strategy to Validate the Role of Callose-mediated Plasmodesmal Gating in the Tropic Response
Published on: April 17, 2016
A Bruce Cahoon1, Katherine A Cunningham, David B Stern
1Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Tower Road, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
Abstract:
The plastid gene clpP is widely regarded as essential for chloroplast function and general plant cell survival. In this note we provide evidence that certain lines of non-photosynthetic maize (Zea mays) Black Mexican Sweet (BMS) suspension cells do not carry clpP in their plastid genomes. We also discuss several incidences in the literature where clpP is either missing or not expressed in other non-green cell lines and plants. We conclude that clpP is not required for general plant cell survival but instead may only be essential for the development and/or function of plastids with active gene expression.
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