부산대학교 도서관

SNARE proteins, evolutionarily conserved membrane fusion proteins, are classified into four subgroups (Qa-, Qb-, Qc-, and R-SNAREs). R-SNAREs are further divided into two classes: longins with the N-terminal longin domain and brevins lacking the longin domain. Longins are also classified into three subgroups, SEC22, YKT6, and VAMP7. Plants possess only longins in their genomes; A. thaliana harbors 18 R-SNAREs, 12 of which belong to the VAMP7 group consisting of VAMP71 and VAMP72 members. While functions of several VAMP72 members have been already reported, precise functions of the VAMP71 group remain totally unknown. We have already demonstrated that only VAMP714 of VAMP71 members is localized in the Golgi when expressed in protoplasts, while other VAMP71 members are localized on the vacuolar membrane. In this study, we isolated VAMP714 homologs from several land plant lineages for information on diversity of plant VAMP71 members, and compared subcellular localization of their products. We will discuss the possible mechanism of functional diversification of the VAMP71 group during evolution.