ABSTRACT
This chapter is limited to recent advances in the study of plant protein isoprenylation, a relatively new area of plant isoprenoid research. The biosynthesis of phytosterols is inevitably coupled to the synthesis of other plant isoprenoids. Isoprenylated proteins are involved in regulation of cell growth, signal transduction, organization of the nuclear matrix and cytoskeleton, intracellular vesicle transport, and other cellular functions. Certain isoprenylated proteins are involved in the organization of the nuclear lamina and cytoskeleton. The nuclear lamina, a proteinaceous matrix lining the inner surface of the nuclear envelope, is composed of nuclear intermediate filament proteins called lamins. The role of the isoprenoid moiety in the function of isoprenylated proteins is currently under investigation. Mevalonate labeling of plant proteins in the 23-kDa range was also demonstrated by incubation of spinach leaves in the presence of mevalonate. Little the identities and functions of isoprenylated plant proteins.
