Giant mitochondria in chloroplast-deprivedEuglena gracilis late after N-succinimidylofloxacin treatment

On the origin of chloroplasts, import mechanisms of chloroplast-targeted proteins, and loss of photosynthetic ability — review

“…Stable bleached mutants incapable of photosynthesis exist that can grow heterotrophically; e.g., the stable bleached mutant W 3 BUL contains a stigma and also a plastid remnant with thylakoid-membrane-specific sulfolipid, while the stable mutant W 10 SmL lacks detectable carotenoids, sulfolipids, stigma and even an identifiable plastid remnant (Schiff et al 1971;Krajčovič et al 2002). The N-succinimide derivate of ofloxacin induced a bleached mutant of E. gracilis W gm ZOflL with permanently altered mitochondria, some ≈5-8 μm long and wide having an unusual shape, others disfigured with unusual shape, giant swollen oval-shaped megamitochondria and some very long (50-60 μm) ones are also seen in addition to normal mitochondria (Polónyi et al 1998;Vacula et al 2001). E. gracilis amitochondrial cells are never found (Krajčovič et al 2002).…”

Euglenoid flagellates: A multifaceted biotechnology platform

“…Stable bleached mutant strains with defects in photosynthesis have been produced by treatment with various chemical and physical agents. These mutant strains are still grown in laboratories (Krajčovič et al, 2002;Polónyi et al, 1998;Schiff et al, 1971;Tucci et al, 2010;Záhonová et al, 2014). Some mutants, such as W 3 BUL (Schiff et al, 1971) or W gm ZOflL (Polónyi et al, 1998) still contain an eyespot with carotenoids and they likely also possess a plastid remnant (Heizmann et al, 1976;Osafune and Schiff, 1980;Osafune et al, 1987).…”

Characterization of oxidative phosphorylation enzymes in Euglena gracilis and its white mutant strain WgmZOflL

“…E. gracilis strain Z (Pringsheim strain Z , SAG 1224‐5/25 Collection of Algae, Göttingen, Germany) and its white mutant W gm ZOflL [38] were grown statically in 100 ml Erlenmeyer flasks containing 50 ml of Hutner media [26] at 26 °C under constant permanent light conditions (using cool white light, 30 μmol photons m − 2 s − 1 ) and also permanently in the dark. Medium was inoculated with 5 × 10 4 cells per ml.…”

“…However, the permanent loss of photosynthetic ability – bleaching – can be induced experimentally in E. gracilis by treatment with various drugs inhibiting bacterial replication, transcription or translation underlying the cyanobacterial origin of Euglena plastid genome (for review see [31]). E. gracilis strain Z was treated with N‐succinimide derivative of ofloxacin and the bleached mutant W gm ZOflL was obtained [38].…”