Regulation and Evolution of C Photosynthesis.

C photosynthesis evolved multiple times independently from ancestral C photosynthesis in a broad range of flowering land plant families and in both monocots and dicots. The evolution of C photosynthesis entails the recruitment of enzyme activities that are not involved in photosynthetic carbon fixation in C plants to photosynthesis. This requires a different regulation of gene expression as well as a different regulation of enzyme activities in comparison to the C context. Further, C photosynthesis relies on a distinct leaf anatomy that differs from that of C, requiring a differential regulation of leaf development in C. We summarize recent progress in the understanding of C-specific features in evolution and metabolic regulation in the context of C photosynthesis.