From the general solubility properties of the chloroplast pigments, do you think it is likely that they also exist in the large central vacuoles of most photosynthetic leaf cells?
Might the solubility properties of these pigments give any clues as to the subcellular location of their synthesis? Explain.
My first instinct was no, they are not found in the central vacuoles. I know that chlorophylls a and b and both polar, but due to their large size I wouldn't think they are soluble in water. Or would their presence in water pull them apart due to the highly polar nature of water molecules? Any help is greatly appreciated.
Might the solubility properties of these pigments give any clues as to the subcellular location of their synthesis? Explain.
My first instinct was no, they are not found in the central vacuoles. I know that chlorophylls a and b and both polar, but due to their large size I wouldn't think they are soluble in water. Or would their presence in water pull them apart due to the highly polar nature of water molecules? Any help is greatly appreciated.
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Chloroplasts are present in the plastids. They are transferred to the vacoules through an autophagic pathway. Chlorophylls are insoluble in water. Now, vacoules are 90% water and therefore, if cholorphyll was to be trasported to the vacoules, it would be insoluble and hence the translocation of the chlorophyll to other areas of cell would be impossible. Therefore, chlorphyll exist only in plastids.