Studies On The Phycoerythrin Genes Of Gracilaria Lemaneiformis

A series of Gracilaria lemaneiformis from different habitates and different pigment mutants were employed in the present studies. The partial gene sequences of their phycoerythrin subunits were obtained by using PCR amplyfication, and further compared and analyzed. The studies aimed to disclose the molecular mechanism of the change of photosynthetic proteins by combining known biochemical results to study on the pigment mutants. The results showed that gene deviations led to the spatial structure change of phycoerythrin, which would effect on the spectral character of this protein. The gene sequence was highly conserved among different strains. The sequence was applied on the phylogenetic studies. The result was in accord with that of the traditional one. Phycoerythrin gene sequence was suggested to be useful in delineating relationship within species and higher than that, but was unfitted in the studies within populations. The studies reported the whole sequence of alfa and beta genes of phycoerythrin subunits of Gracilaria lemaneiformis for the first time. It was then expressed in E.coli. A product with a molecule weigh of 17KD was obtained. A fragment coding for an open reading frame with deduced 185 amino acids was amplified. The results will enhance the studies of phycoerythrin gene structure.