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Updated: Aug 9, 2026

Rapid Analysis of Circadian Phenotypes in Arabidopsis Protoplasts Transfected with a Luminescent Clock Reporter
Published on: September 17, 2016
Transcript levels in plant mitochondria show a tight homeostasis during day and night
Sachiko Okada1, Axel Brennicke
1Molekulare Botanik, Universität Ulm, 89069, Ulm, Germany. sachiko.okada@uni-ulm.de
Abstract:
In plants the physiological and biochemical demands on each cell vary greatly between day and night, mostly due to the differing output of photosynthesis. Chloroplasts, the organelles of photosynthesis, are biochemically closely linked to the other energy generating organelles, the mitochondria. We have now investigated whether gene expression in plant mitochondria is influenced by these daily physiological variations. Transcript synthesis in these organelles cycles in a diurnal rhythm, while steady state transcript levels do not vary between light and dark phases and are stable throughout the diurnal (as well as the circadian) time course. This finding suggests that available steady state transcript levels in plant mitochondria are sufficient to provide the required biochemical capacities also at times of peak respiratory and physiological demands.
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Transcription
Transcription is the process of synthesizing RNA from a DNA sequence by RNA polymerase. It is the first step in producing a protein from a gene sequence. Additionally, many other proteins and regulatory sequences are involved in the proper synthesis of messenger RNA (mRNA). Regulation of transcription is responsible for the differentiation of all the different types of cells and often for the proper cellular response to environmental signals.
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