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Abstract
SUMMARY: Peptidoglycan has been purified from the photosynthetic organelles (‘cyanelles’) of Cyanophora paradoxa. The results indicate the presence of N-acetylmuramic acid, N-acetylglucosamine, alanine, glutamic acid and diaminopimelic acid in the molar ratio of 1:1:1·6:1:1. The peptidoglycan may be present in a lipoprotein-peptidoglycan complex. The structure of the peptidoglycan appears to be identical to that of cyanobacteria and the other Gram-negative bacteria so far studied. Peptidoglycan was also partly purified from two species of cyanobacteria, Gloeothece 7109 and Gloeobacter violaceus. Since the genome of the cyanelle closely resembles that of chloroplasts, the results suggest that the cyanelle of Cyanophora paradoxa is an intermediate form between an endosymbiotic cyanobacterium and a chloroplast.
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