Localization of the Enzymes of Quinolizidine Alkaloid Biosynthesis in Leaf Chloroplasts of Lupinus polyphyllus

Studies with purified chloroplasts of Lupinus polyphyllus LINDL. leaflets indicate that the first two enzymes of quinolizidine alkaloid biosynthesis, lysine decarboxylase and 17-oxosparteine synthase, are localized in the chloroplast stroma. Thus, both enzymes share the same subcellular compartment as the biosynthetic pathway of lysine, the precursor of quinolizidine alkaloids. The activity of diaminopimelate decarboxylase, the final enzyme in lysine biosynthesis, is about two to three orders of magnitude higher than that of the enzymes of alkaloid formation.