Question

Describe an experiment you would perform to test a proposed chloroplast-targeting signal sequence. Be specific about the type of cell and the proteins you would use. Describe the results you would expect if the sequence is indeed a chloroplast-targeting signal.

Answer 1

I would fuse the gene encoding the protein carrying the putative chloroplast-targeting signal sequence with the gene encoding Green Fluorescence protein. The GFP-tagged target protein enable to study the expression of the putative chloroplast localization signal sequence and its final cellular localization

Step-by-step explanation:

The Green Fluorescence protein (GFP) is a protein widely used in molecular biology to investigate the expression of specific genes and then track the movement of proteins in living cells. This protein also can be used as a cell marker and to identify protein-protein interactions. When GFP is excited to a given wavelength (excitation peak 395 nm), it emits green light (emission peak 509 nm), thereby the expression/localization of the GFP-target fusion constructs can be evidenced by using a fluorescence microscope.