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. 1971 Feb;47(2):236–245. doi: 10.1104/pp.47.2.236

Cyanide-insensitive Respiration in Plant Mitochondria 1

D S Bendall a,2, W D Bonner Jr a
PMCID: PMC365849  PMID: 16657603

Abstract

Pathways of electron transport have been studied in mitochondria isolated from hypocotyls of etiolated mung bean seedlings and skunk cabbage spadices that show cyanide-resistant respiratory activity. The residual flux through cytochrome c oxidase is shown to be small in comparison with the flux through an unidentified alternative oxidase that is known to have a high affinity for oxygen. This alternative oxidase is not a cytochrome. Skunk cabbage and mung bean mitochondria contain cytochromes a and a3 that have absorption peaks differing slightly from those of animal preparations. A slow oxidation-reduction of cytochrome a3-CN has been demonstrated. Cytochromes b undergo oxidation and reduction in the presence of cyanide but play no essential role in the cyanide-resistant pathway. Antimycin inhibits to an extent similar to that of cyanide; the respiratory chain bifurcates on the substrate side of the antimycin-sensitive site. Evidence is presented for the selective inhibition by thiocyanate, α, α′-dipyridyl, and 8-hydroxyquinoline of the alternative oxidase pathway, which may therefore contain a non-heme iron protein.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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