Live-cell imaging of the chloroplast outer envelope membrane using fluorescent dyes.

Unlabelled: Chloroplasts are organelles composed of sub-organellar compartments-stroma, thylakoids, and starch granules-and are surrounded by outer and inner envelope membranes (OEM and IEM, respectively). The chloroplast OEM and IEM play key roles not only as a barrier separating the chloroplast components from the cytosol but also in the interchange of numerous metabolites and proteins between the chloroplast interior and the cytosol. Fluorescent protein markers for the chloroplast OEM have been widely used to visualize the outermost border of chloroplasts.

Relationship between relocation of phototropin to the chloroplast periphery and the initiation of chloroplast movement in .

The blue-light photoreceptor kinase phototropin (phot) mediates chloroplast movement in response to light and temperature. Phot predominantly localizes at the plasma membrane, but also resides in the cytosol and the chloroplast periphery. Although the phot localized to the chloroplast periphery is thought to mediate chloroplast movement, the localization mechanism is unknown.