Introduction to Chlamydomonas
2006; Springer Science+Business Media; Linguagem: Inglês
10.1007/0-306-48204-5_1
Autores Tópico(s)Photoreceptor and optogenetics research
ResumoThe unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas has found widespread use as a model experimental system for diverse studies in cell and molecular biology. The ability of C. reinhardtii to grow heterotrophically with acetate as its sole carbon source has made this species especially useful for investigation of chloroplast biogenesis and function, since mutants unable to carry out photosynthesis are viable. The simple vegetative and sexual cycles are easily manipulated in the laboratory, making this organism a powerful tool for genetic analysis of photosynthesis as well as many other cellular functions. The usual laboratory strain of C. reinhardtii is the descendant ofan isolate made in Massachusetts in 1945. Several additional strains interfertile with this one have been isolated from nature, all from North America, and are providing a useful source of molecular diversity. More than 300 genetic and molecular loci have now been identified in seventeen linkage groups in the nuclear genome. Maps, references, cultures and other resources for Chlamydomonas research are available from the Chlamydomonas Genetics Center and other collections.
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