Summary
Flagellar scales from the green flagellateTetraselmis striata (Prasinophyceae) were isolated, purified by isopycnic cesium chloride-gradient and zonal sucrose gradient centrifugation and their structure and biochemical composition investigated. Three types of flagellar scales were purified to more than 90% purity, a fourth type up to 75% purity. In addition to the previously known types of flagellar scales (pentagonal scales, rod-shaped scales, hair-scales), a novel scale type (i.e., the knotted scales) was discovered. New information about the asymmetric structure of the rod-shaped scales is presented and consequently they are renamed “man scales”. Flagellar scales consist mainly of carbohydrate (50–70%), significant amounts of protein (11% of dry weight) were found only in pentagonal scales. The main sugars (90%) of the pentagonal and man scales are the unusual 2-keto-sugar acids 3-deoxy-5-O-methyl-2-octulosonic acid (5 OMeKDO), 3-deoxy-2-heptulosaric acid (DHA), and 3-deoxy-2-octulosonic acid (KDO), the knotted scales contain as major sugars galactose and arabinose in addition to KDO and 5 OMeKDO but lack DHA. 13 major polypeptides were identified in flagellar scales by one-dimensional SDS-PAGE, 11 of these are of high molecular mass (>116 kDa). While the majority of polypeptides was found associated with pentagonal scales, at least 4 polypeptides were tentatively assigned to the hair-scales and knotted scales.
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Abbreviations
- CSF:
-
crude scale fraction
- PS:
-
pentagonal scales
- MS:
-
man scales
- HS:
-
hair-scales
- KS:
-
knotted scales
- SDS-PAGE:
-
sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis
- DHA:
-
3-deoxylyxo-2-heptulosaric acid
- 5 OMeKDO:
-
3-deoxy-5-O-methyl-manno-2-octulosonic acid
- KDO:
-
3-deoxy-manno-2-octulosonic acid
- GA:
-
Golgi apparatus
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Becker, D., Becker, B., Satir, P. et al. Isolation, purification, and characterization of flagellar scales from the green flagellateTetraselmis striata (Prasinophyceae). Protoplasma 156, 103–112 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01666511
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01666511