Regulation of reserve protein metabolism in the cotyledons of mung bean seedlings.

Seedling growth in mung beans (Phaseolus aureus, Roxb.) is accompanied by the metabolism of the reserve proteins, and the appearance in the cotyledons of a proteolytic enzyme with endopeptidase activity. Enzyme activity increases 25-fold during the first 5 days of growth. Cotyledon extracts prepared from seeds imbibed for 24 hr with water do not react with rabbit endopeptidase antiserum, which suggests that the enzyme is not present in the seeds as a zymogen. Labeling experiments show that the enzyme is synthesized in the course of seedling growth. The endopeptidase is localized in the protein bodies, and the specific activity of the enzyme in these organelles increases 30-fold. Ultrastructural studies show that the rough endoplasmic reticulum proliferates and may give rise to vesicles which fuse with the protein bodies prior to reserve protein digestion. These vesicles could be the primary lysosomes which transport the enzyme from its site of synthesis to its site of action.