The Influence of 5-Aminolevulinic Acid on Protochlorophyllide and Protochlorophyll Accumulation in Dark-Grown Scenedesmus

The intermediate of chlorophyll biosynthesis, 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA ), is a necessary prerequisite for the formation of protochlorophyllide (PChlide) and protochlorophyll (PChl) in the dark. The application of ALA to a dark-grown culture of the pigment mutant C-2 A′ of Scenedesmus obliquus increased the amount of PChlide 30-fold and the amount of PChl about 10-fold. The rates of ALA-dependent formation of PChlide and PChl reach their maximum values at different concentrations of added ALA . Similarly, the kinetics of PChlide and PChl formation in cells incubated with ALA are different. Cells of Scenedesmus mutant C-2 A′ incubated with various concentrations of ALA for different periods provide a good tool for future studies differentiating between PChlide and PChl metabolism . − The incorporation of Chl deriving from either PChl or PChlide into different pigment protein complexes is discussed.