Evaluating the role of Rubisco regulation in photosynthesis of C 3 plants

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Abstract
The enzyme ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase (Rubisco) catalyses the entry of carbon dioxide into photosynthetic metabolism, provides acceptor molecules that consume the products of the light reactions of photosynthesis, and regulates the pool sizes of important photosynthetic intermediates. Studies of the regulation of Rubisco in vivo have required the development and adaptation of biochemical techniques to physiological questions. For example, the analogue of the six-carbon intermediate 2-carboxyarabinitol bisphosphate is now used in several ways to assess regulation of Rubisco. The advances in understanding Rubisco regulation allow a re-evaluation of the concepts of regulation and limitation of photosynthesis. The Blackman view of limiting factors in photosynthesis is supported by measurements and can be explained by the regulation of Rubisco. This regulation of Rubisco can result in the efficient use of resources. The Blackman view remains a useful framework for discovering patterns in the complex regulation of Rubisco.