Abstract
Inhibitors of eubacterial and eukaryotic DNA topoisomerases type II exhibited different effects on chloroplasts of the flagellateEuglena gracilis. Antibacterial agents (cinoxacin, nalidixic and oxolinic acids, ciprofloxacin, enoxacin, norfloxacin and ofloxacin) from the group of quinolones and coumarins (coumermycin A1, clorobiocin and novobiocin) — all inhibitors of prokaryotic DNA topoisomerase II — were very potent eliminators of chloroplasts fromE. gracilis. In contrast, antitumor drugs (adriamycin, etoposide, teniposide and mitoxantrone) — antagonists of the eukaryotic counterpart — did not affect these semiautonomous photosynthetic organelles. These findings point out again the close evolutionary relationships between eubacteria and chloroplasts and are in agreement with the hypothesis of an endosymbiotic origin of chloroplasts.
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Krajčovič, J., Ebringer, L. Different effects of eubacterial and eukaryotic DNA topoisomerase II inhibitors on chloroplasts ofEuglena gracilis . Origins Life Evol Biosphere 20, 177–180 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01808280
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01808280