Photosynthesis in detached rye leaves at normal and low oxygen concentration. II. Incorporation of 14CO2 into amino acids.

: The pools of Arg, Gly, His, Ile, Ser, Glu, Leu, Val and Asp were lower during photosynthesis at 1% O2 concentration. At the same time specific radioactivity of a number of amino acids--following 14CO2 incorporation--was different than that at atmospheric O2 concentration. This is probably due to the inhibition of the photorespiratory nitrogen cycle and the resulting NH+4 deficiency. The pattern of response to O2 concentration suggests that in rye plants in the light, all Gly and a part of Ser are synthesized by an O2-sensitive pathway, i.e. via the glycolate pathway, but most of Ser is probably formed from 3-phosphoglycerate (3-PGA) via the O2-insensitive pathway. Changes in the pool size and specific radioactivity after 6 h incubation in darkness suggest that synthesis of Gly is strongly light-dependent, whereas synthesis of Ser was substantial also in darkness. The specific radioactivity of Ala, Asp, Ser and Glu indicates that in darkness those amino acids are formed from a common precursor, i.e. glycolytic 3-PGA, and undergo rapid metabolic turnover.