The integral membrane proteins Alb3, OxaI, and YidC belong to an evolutionary conserved protein family mediating protein insertion into the thylakoid membrane of chloroplasts, the inner membrane of mitochondria, and bacteria, respectively. Whereas OxaI and YidC are involved in the insertion of a wide range of membrane proteins, the function of Alb3 seems to be limited to the insertion of a subset of the light-harvesting chlorophyllbinding proteins. In this study, we identified a second chloroplast homologue of the Alb3/OxaI/YidC family, named Alb4. Alb4 is almost identical to the Alb3/OxaI/YidC domain of the previously described 110-kDa inner envelope protein Artemis. We show that Alb4 is expressed as a separate 55-kDa protein and that Artemis was identified mistakenly. Alb4 is located in the thylakoid membrane of Arabidopsis thaliana chloroplasts. Analysis of an Arabidopsis mutant (Salk_136199) and RNA interference lines with a reduced level of Alb4 revealed chloroplasts with an altered ultrastructure. Mutant plastids are larger and more spherical in appearance, and the grana stacks within the mutant lines are less appressed than in the wild-type chloroplasts. These data indicate that Alb4 is required for proper chloroplast biogenesis.

The Antarctic ice diatom Amphiprora kufferathii Manguin is always accompanied by epiphytic bacteria in its natural habitat. To investigate the nature of this relationship, axenic cultures of A. kufferathii were obtained by ampicillin treatment. Diatom cultures without bacteria were less dense. The bacteria were shown to consume hydrogen peroxide produced by the diatom during photosysnthesis and algal photosynthesis after a hydrogen peroxide shock recovered faster in the presence of bacteria. Three proteobacterial strains isolated from a culture of A. kufferathii were phylogenetically affiliated with the alphaproteobacterial genus Sulfitobacter, the gammaproteobacterial genus Colwellia, and the genus Pibocella of the Bacteriodetes. Native protein gel electrophoresis and enzyme activity staining revealed the presence of superoxide dismutase and glutathione reductase in the isolated bacteria and in A. kufferathii cultures. Catalase was detected in bacterial extracts but not in axenic cultures of A. kufferathii. These observations indicate that the epiphytic bacteria make a significant contribution to the diatom's antioxidative defences. The relationship between the bacteria and A. kufferathii seems to be beneficial for both partners and enhances growth of Amphiprora in the sea ice.

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