Abstract
The green unicellular alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii,
also called 'green yeast', emerged in the past
years as a model organism for specific scientific
questions such as chloroplast biogenesis and function,
the composition of the flagella including its basal
apparatus, or the mechanism of the circadian clock.
Sequencing of its chloroplast and mitochondrial
genomes have already been completed and a first
draft of its nuclear genome has also been released recently.
In C. reinhardtii several circadian rhythms are
physiologically well characterized, and one of them
has even been shown to operate in outer space. Circadian
expression patterns of nuclear and plastid
genes have been studied. The mode of regulation of
these genes occurs at the transcriptional level, although
there is also evidence for posttranscriptional
control. A clock-controlled, phylogenetically conserved
RNA-binding protein was characterized in this
alga, which interacts with several mRNAs that all
contain a common cis-acting motif. Its function within
the circadian system is currently under investigation.
This review summarizes the current state of the
knowledge about the circadian system in C. reinhardtii
and points out its potential for future studies.
Circadian Clock Regulation of Starch Metabolism Establishes GBSSI as a Major Contributor to Amylopectin Synthesis in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
