Are the ubiquitous mitochondrial glutaredoxin-like proteins of 12 kDa (MGP12) true glutaredoxins?

Abstract : A comparative analysis of plant genomes revealed the existence of genes coding for uncharacterized proteins with conserved CxxC motif(s) and/or a predicted thioredoxin fold which may thus contribute to novel redox-regulated cellular functions. With the aim of functionally characterizing the selected proteins, we combined biochemical and structural analyses of recombinant proteins together with cellular approaches in order to determine their subcellular localizations and isolate their partner proteins. When possible, Arabidopsis mutant phenotypes have been analyzed. The most recent data obtained on specific plant representatives will be presented.