The Development of Activities of Some Enzymes Concerned with Glycollate Metabolism in Greening Bean Leaves

Abstract

The activities of phosphoglycollate phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.18), glycollate oxidase (EC 1.1.3.1.). catalase (EC 1.11.1.6), the peroxisomal NADH-glyoxylate reductase (EC 1.1.1.26) which is considered to function as a hydroxypyruvate reductase in the peroxisomes, and the chloro-plastic NADPH-dependent glyoxylate reductaae, have been measured in extracts prepared from 14-d-old dark-grown bean leaves during the course of their greening in response to exposure to continuous illumination. All of the enzymes were found in the dark-grown leaves and on a per-leaf basis the activities increased from 6- to 12-fold with the exception of a 2–3-fold increase of NADPH-dependent glyoxylate reductase during 96-h greening, while the activities either remained constant or declined during similar periods in darkness. Initial lag periods were evident before the illumination-induced increases in enzyme activities. As D-threo-chloramphenicol did not affect the increase in activity of any of these enzymes it would appear that the increases were in no way dependent on protein synthesis by 70S ribosomes, or on the development of photosynthetic activity.