Protein that Brings out Fall Colour Identified

Plant pigments are bound to specific proteins. In the fall, environmental changes signal the plant to break down the protein that is bonded to the chlorophyll, so that the plant can recycle the amino acids. As the green pigment fades other pigments found in the leaves of the plants can be seen, resulting in the bright autumn splendor enjoyed in temperate regions.

Researchers at Umeå Plant Science Centre have identified a protease, a type of protein that degrades other proteins, that appears to be responsible for the breakdown of the protein bonded to chlorophyll.

Link: Protein Behind Autumn Colour Splendour Identified from I-Newswire.com

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 9:44 AM on October 4, 2005

Want to talk about this weblog entry? As of August 22, 2006, all new entries and most older entries are cross-posted to the UBC Botanical Garden Discussion Forums for discussion (you might need to use the search function to find the thread you are looking for).

This is an effort to reduce the amount of time spent dealing with spam (the forums are very good at stopping spam, the weblog commenting system is not so good).

Older entries already containing comments remain open for discussion.