PSI颗粒中LHPC—I含量与类囊体膜状态的关系

菠菜叶绿体经低渗ＫＣＬ或１ｍｍｏｌ／ＬＥＤＴＡ溶液处理后,再用毛地黄苷法提取ＰＳＩ颗粒,前者ｃｈｌ ａ／ｂ高于后者。而ＥＤＴＡ－ＰＳＩ颗粒的耗氧活力极强,低温荧光发射具很强的Ｆ６８０。ＳＤＳ－凝胶电脉谱带也表明ＥＤＴＡ－ＰＳＩ颗粒具较浓的２０－２４ｋｄ谱带。凡此都说明ＥＤＴＡ－ＰＳＩ颗粒的ＬＨＰＣ－Ｉ含量远超过ＫＣＬ－ＰＳＩ颗粒的。而叶绿体经ＭｇＣｌ２、ＫＣｌ、ＥＤＴＡ溶液处理后,基粒类囊体膜垛叠     

光周期对光敏核不育水稻叶绿体类囊体膜超分子结构的影响

通过冰冻撕裂叶绿体类囊体膜电镜术的研究,在超分子水平上揭示出长日照（ＬＤ）与短日照（ＳＤ）对突变型光敏核雄性不育水稻农垦５８Ｓ及其野生型农垦５８ 倒二叶叶绿体类囊体膜的形成有不同的影响。农垦５８－ＳＤ 和农垦５８－ＬＤ差别不明显;而农垦５８Ｓ－ＳＤ和农垦５８Ｓ－ＬＤ之间出现较明显的差异：（１）农垦５８Ｓ－ＳＤ 叶绿体类囊体膜的垛叠和非垛叠膜区的４ 个冰冻撕裂膜小面呈现的功能蛋白粒的密度、大小及构象分布与其对照农垦５８－ＳＤ 和农垦５８－ＬＤ 类似,均属正常的超分子结构类型。（２）农垦５８Ｓ－ＳＤ叶绿体垛叠类囊体膜区的外质撕裂面（ＥＦｓ）功能蛋白粒的密度比５８Ｓ－ＬＤ的大,且在有的垛叠膜区呈现出类晶格状的规则排列。（３）农垦５８Ｓ－ＬＤ 叶绿体非垛叠膜区的原生质撕裂面（ＰＦｕ）和外质撕裂面（ＥＦｕ）出现频率较低,往往在基粒的边缘膜或末端中能找到,且分布于膜上的功能蛋白粒的密度较小。有的叶绿体ＥＦｕ、ＰＦｕ、ＥＦｓ和垛叠膜区原生质撕裂面（ＰＦｓ）功能蛋白粒极少或丧失,表明类囊体膜受到严重损伤     

海生植物叶绿体膜中阳离子诱导激发能分配变化的静电控制与非静电控制的研究

用Ｃａ２＋和胰酶处理大叶藻（Ｚｏｓｔｅｒａｍａｒｉｎａ）和刺松藻（Ｃｏｄｉｕｍｆｒａｇｉｌｅ）叶绿体膜,研究了它们的类囊体膜多肽组分与Ｍｇ２＋诱导Ｃｈｌａ荧光和膜表面电荷变化之间的相互关系。观察到：（１）在大叶藻的叶绿体膜中,Ｍｇ２＋诱导ＰＳ－Ⅱ荧光强度的增高与其诱导类囊体膜表面电荷密度的降低密切相关;但这种相关性的效应不存在于刺松藻的叶绿体膜中。（２）用Ｃａ２＋处理这两种叶绿体膜分别除去其类囊体膜表面的３２－３４ＫＤ和３０－３１ＫＤ多肽,对上述Ｍｇ２＋诱导的现象无明显的影响。（３）用胰酶进一步消化这些Ｃａ２＋处理过的叶绿体膜分别除去其类囊体膜表面的２６ＫＤ和２３－２４ＫＤ多肽,那么在大叶藻的叶绿体膜中,Ｍｇ２＋诱导荧光和类囊体膜表面电荷变化的相关性效应则全部消失;但在刺松藻的叶绿体膜中,Ｍｇ２＋诱导荧光增高的效应完全消失,而Ｍｇ２＋诱导膜表面电荷变化的性质则保持不变。这些实验结果不仅证明,类囊体膜表面的２６ＫＤ和２３－２４ＫＤ多肽分别为大叶藻和刺松藻叶绿体膜中阳离子诱导激发能在ＰＳ－Ⅱ和ＰＳ－Ⅰ之间分配变化的特异性作用部位;而且说明阳离子调节激发能在这两个光系统之间分配的机理,在这两种海生植物的叶绿体膜中     

海生植物叶绿体膜中阳离子诱导激发能分配变化的静电控制与非静…

用Ｃａ＾２＋和胰酶处理大叶藻和剌松藻叶绿体膜，研究了它们的类囊体膜多肽组分与Ｍｇ＾２＋诱导Ｃｈｌａ荧光和膜表面电荷变化之间的相互关系。观察到：（１）在大叶藻的叶绿体膜中，Ｍｇ＾２＋诱导ＰＳ－Ⅱ荧光强度的增高与其诱导类囊体膜表面电荷密度的降低密切相关；但这种相关性的效应不存在于剌松藻的叶绿体膜中。（２）用Ｃａ＾２＋处理这两种叶绿体膜分别除去其类囊体膜表面的３２－３４ＫＤ和３０－３１ＫＤ多肽，对上述Ｍ     

菠菜和黄瓜光系统Ⅱ捕光叶绿素a／b蛋白质复合体的比较研究

用菠菜（Ｓｐｉｎａｃｉａ ｏｌｅｒａｃｅａ Ｍｉｌｌ．）和黄瓜（Ｃｕｃｕｍ ｉｓｓａｔｉｖｕｓＬ．）叶片的叶绿体制备出光系统Ⅱ捕光叶绿素ａ／ｂ 蛋白质复合体（ＬＨＣⅡ）,并对这两种ＬＨＣⅡ的聚合状态的Ｃｈｌａ／ｂ 值、光谱特性以及多肽组分进行了比较研究。实验结果表明,菠菜ＬＨＣⅡ的Ｃｈｌａ／ｂ 为１．３３,黄瓜ＬＨＣⅡ的Ｃｈｌａ／ｂ 为１．１７。其光谱特性说明黄瓜的ＬＨＣⅡ更富含Ｃｈｌｂ。它们的多肽组分存在着明显差异,菠菜的ＬＨＣⅡ含有２７ ｋＤ和２５ ｋＤ ２个多肽,而黄瓜的ＬＨＣⅡ只含有２７ ｋＤ １个多肽,这表明２５ ｋＤ多肽含有较少的Ｃｈｌｂ。叶绿素蛋白质复合体的分析结果表明,菠菜ＬＨＣⅡ的单体、二聚体及三聚体均由２个多肽组成;而黄瓜的ＬＨＣⅡ不同聚合状态均由１个多肽组成     

莲子在光下萌发过程中叶绿体色素蛋白质复合体及光化活性的变化

实验研究了莲种子（ＮｅｌｕｍｂｏｎｕｃｉｆｅｒａＧａｅｒｔｎ．）在光下萌发过程中叶绿体色素蛋白复合体、多肽组成以及ＰＳⅡ光化活性的变化。结果表明,萌发到第６天的莲胚芽叶绿体,在ＳＤＳＰＡＧＥ凝胶柱中只分出两条色素带,分别为捕光叶绿素蛋白复合体（ＬＨＣⅡ）和自由色素（ＦＰ）。萌发到第８天的莲叶绿体可分出ＣＰⅠ,ＬＨＣⅡ１、ＬＨＣⅡ和ＦＰ。仍未检测到ＰＳⅡ反应中心复合物。多肽分析表明：未萌发和萌发到第２天的叶绿体中３０ｋＤ多肽的含量显著,尽管２７ｋＤ多肽在未见光时已开始合成,但其含量很少。随着照光时间增长,３０ｋＤ多肽含量逐渐减少,２７ｋＤ多肽的含量逐渐增多,到第１２天时超过３０ｋＤ多肽的含量。电子传递速率和室温荧光诱导动力学的测定表明：ＰＳⅡ光化活性在莲子萌发到第７天时才开始出现,并随萌发时间增加而升高,与此同时Ｃｈｌａ／ｂ比值由低到高达到正常值。莲子在光下萌发过程中其叶绿体膜成分及膜功能的变化与它的超微结构的变化相符合。结果再次证明,莲胚芽叶绿体在光下的发育具有与其它高等植物所不同的独特途径,这为莲在被子植物系统发育中占有独特地位的看法提供了依据。     

青海高原不同海拔地带生长的珠芽蓼光合特性的比较

对生长于青海高原不同海拔的珠芽蓼（Ｐｏｌｉｇｏｎｕｍｖｉｖｉｐａｒｕｍ）叶片的光合特性进行比较研究发现：随海拔升高叶绿素含量有降低趋势,叶绿素ａ／ｂ比值及类胡萝卜素含量有增大趋势。不同海拔的珠芽蓼叶片和叶绿体的Ｆｖ／Ｆｏ、Ｆｖ／Ｆｍ和Ｒｆｄ值随海拔升高而增大,表明随海拔升高,其潜在光合活力增加。低温荧光测定显示,随海拔升高叶绿体中ＰＳＩ和ＰＳＩ的相对荧光产量比值（ＰＳＩ／ＰＳＩＩ）减小。叶绿体蛋白质ＳＤＳ－ＰＡＧＥ结果表明,在２８－３２ＫＤ附近电泳谱带的变化显著。     

大鼠卵巢促黄体激素受体膜外微区（1—341）在昆虫细胞中的表达…

促黄体激素／人绒毛膜促性腺激素受体（ＬＨ／ｈＣＧ ｒｅｃｅｐｔｏｒ）Ｎ端膜外微区３４１个氨基酸残基（简称Ｒ３４１）与激素有很高的亲和力。本文报道编码Ｒ３４１的ｃＤＮＡ在昆虫细胞中的表达及其产物性质的初步研究。ＳＤＳ－ＰＡＧＥ银染及其产物性质的初步研究。ＳＤＳ－ＰＡＧＥ银染和免疫印迹结果显示,表达产物呈两条带：分子量为３８．５Ｋｄ的主带和分子量为４０．０Ｋｄ的次带。配基结合免疫印迹和１２５Ｉ－ｈＣＧ     

光系统II核心天线CP43和CP47的分离纯化及光谱性质研究

采用ＤＥＡＥ－ＦｒａｃｔｏｇｅｌＴＳＫ６５０Ｓ阴离子交换树脂柱层析法从菠菜（ＳｐｉｎａｃｉａＯｌｅｒａｃｅａ）中分离纯化了ＰＳＩＩ核心天线复合物ＣＰ４３和ＣＰ４７,计算出每分子ＣＰ４３含１９－２０个Ｃｈｌａ和４－５个β－Ｃａｒ;每分子ＣＰ４７含２０－２１个Ｃｈｌａ和３－４个β－Ｃａｒ。普通及三维（３Ｄ）低温（７７Ｋ）荧光发射光谱的测定证明,纯化的ＣＰ４３和ＣＰ４７都具有较好的完整性。常温（２９８Ｋ）吸收光谱的测定,证明纯化的ＣＰ４３和ＣＰ４７的红光区最大吸收峰分别位于６７１ｎｍ和６７４ｎｍ,但是它们在该区的四阶导数光谱均给出６７０ｎｍ和６８２ｎｍ两个峰,这表明,它们均至少含有两种不同结合状态的Ｃｈｌａ分子。对ＣＰ４３和ＣＰ４７中可能的能量传递机制进行了讨论     

光系统II核心天线CP43和CP47的分离纯化及光谱性质研究

采用ＤＥＡＥ－ＦｒａｃｔｏｇｅｌＴＳＫ６５０２阴离子交换树脂柱层析法从菠 菜中分离纯化了ＰＳＯⅡ核心天线复合物ＣＰ４３和ＣＰ４７,计算出每分子ＣＰ４３含１９－２０个Ｃｈｌａ和４－５个β－Ｃａｒ;     

Improved rates of CO2-fixation by intact chloroplasts isolated in media with KCl as the osmoticum

Intact chloroplasts were isolated from spinach leaves using media with either 330 mM sorbitol or 200 mM KCl as the osmoticum. Chloroplasts isolated in KCl exhibited higher rates of CO₂-dependent oxygen evolution in nine out of ten experiments, the average increase being 43%. Chloroplasts isolated in KCl routinely achieved rates of CO₂-dependent oxygen evolution of 200–300 mol·mg chlorophyll^-1·hour^-1 at 20°C. Intact chloroplasts were also isolated in media with 200 mM NaCl or choline chloride but the rates of CO₂ fixation were not superior to those isolated in sorbitol media. The K⁺ content of chloroplasts isolated in KCl media was higher than for chloroplasts isolated in sorbitol. It is suggested that the use of KCl as an osmoticum prevents the loss of chloroplast K⁺ which can occur during isolation in sorbitol media. Chloroplasts isolated in KCl lost, on average, 36% of the initial CO₂ fixation activity after storage for four hours on ice, compared to 24% loss of activity for chloroplasts isolated in sorbitol. This increased loss of activity was not observed if KCl was used in the grinding medium and sorbitol or glycinebetaine in the resuspension media. For measurement of the maximum photosynthetic capacity in vitro, the use of KCl in the grinding medium may be better than sorbitol.Abbreviations BSA bovine serum albumin - Chl chlorophyll - Pi inorganic orthophosphate - EDTA ethlenediamine tetraacetic acid     

Characterisation of senescence-induced changes in light harvesting complex II and photosystem I complex of thylakoids of Cucumis sativus cotyledons: age induced association of LHCII with photosystem I

Structure and function of chloroplasts are known to after during senescence. The senescence-induced specific changes in light harvesting antenna of photosystem II (PSII) and photosystem I (PSI) were investigated in Cucumis cotyledons. Purified light harvesting complex II (LHCII) and photosystem I complex were isolated from 6-day non-senescing and 27-day senescing Cucumis cotyledons. The chlorophyll a/b ratio of LHCII obtained from 6-day-old control cotyledons and their absorption, chlorophyll a fluorescence emission and the circular dichroism (CD) spectral properties were comparable to the LHCII preparations from other plants such as pea and spinach. The purified LHCII obtained from 27-day senescing cotyledons had a Chl a/b ratio of 1.25 instead of 1.2 as with 6-day LHCII and also exhibited significant changes in the visible CD spectrum compared to that of 6-day LHCII, indicating some specific alterations in the organisation of chlorophylls of LHCII. The light harvesting antenna of photosystems are likely to be altered due to aging. The room temperature absorption spectrum of LHCII obtained from 27-day senescing cotyledons showed changes in the peak positions. Similarly, comparison of 77K chlorophyll a fluorescence emission characteristics of LHCII preparation from senescing cotyledons with that of control showed a small shift in the peak position and the alteration in the emission profile, which is suggestive of possible changes in energy transfer within LHCII chlorophylls. Further, the salt induced aggregation of LHCII samples was lower, resulting in lower yields of LHCII from 27-day cotyledons than from normal cotyledons. Moreover, the PSI preparations of 6-day cotyledons showed Chl a/b ratios of 5 to 5.5, where as the PSI sample of 27-day cotyledons had a Chl a/b ratio of 2.9 suggesting LHCII association with PSI. The absorption, fluorescence emission and visible CD spectral measurements as well as the polypeptide profiles of 27-day cotyledon-PSI complexes indicated age-induced association of LHCII of PSII with PSI obtained from 27-day cotyledons. We modified our isolation protocols by increasing the duration of detergent Triton X-100 treatment for preparing the PSI and LHCII complexes from 27-day cotyledons. However, the PSI complexes isolated from senescing samples invariably proved to have significantly low Chl a/b ratio suggesting an age induced lateral movement and possible association of LHCII with PSI complexes. The analyses of polypeptide compositions of LHCII and PSI holocomplexes isolated from 6-day control and 27-day senescing cotyledons showed distinctive differences in their profiles. The presence of 26-28 kDa polypeptide in PSI complexes from 27-day cotyledons, but not in 6-day control PSI complexes is in agreement with the notion that senescence induced migration of LHCII to stroma lamellae and its possible association with PSI. We suggest that the migration of LHCII to the stroma lamellae region and its possible association with PSI might cause the destacking and flattening of grana structure during senescence of the chloroplasts. Such structural changes in light harvesting antenna are likely to alter energy transfer between two photosystems. The nature of aging induced migration and association of LHCII with PSI and its existence in other senescing systems need to be estimated in the future.     

Light quality during growth of Tradescantia albiflora regulates photosystem stoichiometry, photosynthetic function and susceptibility to photoinhibition

Tradescantia albiflora (Kunth) was grown under two different light quality regimes of comparable light quantity: in red + far-red light absorbed mainly by photosystem I (PSI light) and yellow light absorbed mainly by photosystem II (PSII light). The composition, function and ultrastructure of chloroplasts, and photoinhibition of photosynthesis in the two types of leaves were compared. In contrast to regulation by light quantity (Chow et al. 1991. Physiol. Plant. 81: 175–182), light quality exerted an effect on the composition of pigment complexes, function and structure of chloroplasts in Tradescantia: PSII light-grown leaves had higher Chl a/b ratios, higher PSI concentrations, lower PSII/PSI reaction centre ratios and less extensive thylakoid stacking than PSI light-grown leaves. Light quality triggered modulations of chloroplast components, leading to a variation of photosynthetic characteristics. A larger proportion of primary quinone acceptor (Q_A) in PSI light-grown leaves was chemically reduced at any given irradiance. It was also observed that the quantum yield of PSII photochemistry was lower in PSI light-grown leaves. PSI light-grown leaves were more sensitive to photoinihibition and recovery was slower compared to PSII light-grown leaves, showing that the PSII reaction centre in PSI light-grown leaves was more easily impaired by photoinhibition. The increase in susceptibility of leaves to photoinhibition following blockage of chloroplast-encoded protein synthesis was greater in PSII light-grown leaves, showing that these leaves normally have a greater capacity for PSII repair. Inhibition of zeaxanthin formation by dithiothreitol slightly increased sensitivity to photoinhibition in both PSI and PSII light-grown leaves.     

THE CYANOBACTERIAL CHLOROPHYLL‐BINDING‐PROTEIN ISIA ACTS TO INCREASE THE IN VIVO EFFECTIVE ABSORPTION CROSS‐SECTION OF PSI UNDER IRON LIMITATION1

Iron availability limits primary production in >30% of the world’s oceans; hence phytoplankton have developed acclimation strategies. In particular, cyanobacteria express IsiA (iron‐stress‐induced) under iron stress, which can become the most abundant chl‐binding protein in the cell. Within iron‐limited oceanic regions with significant cyanobacterial biomass, IsiA may represent a significant fraction of the total chl. We spectroscopically measured the effective cross‐section of the photosynthetic reaction center PSI (σ_PSI) in vivo and biochemically quantified the absolute abundance of PSI, PSII, and IsiA in the model cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. We demonstrate that accumulation of IsiA results in a ～60% increase in σ_PSI, in agreement with the theoretical increase in cross‐section based on the structure of the biochemically isolated IsiA‐PSI supercomplex from cyanobacteria. Deriving a chl budget, we suggest that IsiA plays a primary role as a light‐harvesting antenna for PSI. On progressive iron‐stress in culture, IsiA continues to accumulate without a concomitant increase in σ_PSI, suggesting that there may be a secondary role for IsiA. In natural populations, the potential physiological significance of the uncoupled pool of IsiA remains to be established. However, the functional role as a PSI antenna suggests that a large fraction of IsiA‐bound chl is directly involved in photosynthetic electron transport.     

Reconstitution of light-harvesting complexes and photosystem II cores into galactolipid and phospholipid liposomes

Chlorophyll a/b light-harvesting complexes (chl a/b LHC) and photosystem II (PSII) cores were isolated from an octyl glucoside-containing sucrose gradient after solubilization of barley thylakoid membranes with Triton X-100 and octyl glucoside. No cation precipitation step was necessary to collect the chl a/b LHC. PAGE under mildly denaturing and fully denaturing conditions showed that the chl a/b LHC fraction contained chlorophyll-protein complexes CP27, CP29, and CP64. The PSII core material contained CP43 and CP47, and little contamination by other nonpigmented polypeptides. Freeze-fracture electron microscopy of the chl a/b LHC after reconstitution into digalactosyldiglyceride (DG) or phosphatidylcholine (PC) vesicles showed that the protein particles (approximately 7.5 +/- 1.6 nm) were approximately 99 and 90% randomly dispersed, respectively, in the liposomes. Addition of Mg++ produced particle aggregation and membrane adhesion in chl a/b LHC-DG liposomes in a manner analogous to that described for LHC-PC liposomes. Reconstitution of PSII cores into DG vesicles also produced proteoliposomes with randomly dispersed particles (approximately 7.5 +/- 1.6 nm). In contrast, PSII-PC mixtures formed convoluted networks of tubular membranes that exhibited very few fracture faces. Most of the protein particles (approximately 7.0 +/- 1.5 nm) were seen trapped between, rather than embedded in, the membranes. The interaction between the zwitterionic head group of the phosphatidyl choline and the negatively charged PSII core may be responsible for the unusual membrane structures observed.     

RIBOSOMES BOUND TO CHLOROPLAST MEMBRANES IN CHLAMYDOMONAS REINHARDTII

The amount of chloroplast ribosomal RNAs of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii which sediment at 15,000 g is increased when cells are treated with chloramphenicol. Preparations of chloroplast membranes from chloramphenicol-treated cells contain more chloroplast ribosomal RNAs than preparations from untreated cells. The membranes from treated cells also contain more ribosome-like particles, some of which appear in polysome-like arrangements. About 50% of chloroplast ribosomes are released from membranes in vitro as subunits by 1 mM puromycin in 500 mM KCl. A portion of chloroplast ribosomal subunits is released by 500 mM KCl alone, a portion by 1 mM puromycin alone, and a portion by 1 mM puromycin in 500 mM KCl. Ribosomes are not released from isolated membranes by treatment with ribonuclease. Membranes in chloroplasts of chloramphenicol-treated cells show many ribosomes associated with membranes, some of which are present in polysome-like arrangements. This type of organization is less frequent in chloroplasts of untreated cells. Streptogramin, an inhibitor of initiation, prevents chloramphenicol from acting to permit isolation of membrane-bound ribosomes. Membrane-bound chloroplast ribosomes are probably a normal component of actively growing cells. The ability to isolate membrane-bound ribosomes from chloramphenicol-treated cells is probably due to chloramphenicol-prevented completion of nascent chains during harvesting of cells. Since chloroplasts synthesize some of their membrane proteins, and a portion of chloroplast ribosomes is bound to chloroplast membranes through nascent protein chains, it is suggested that the membrane-bound ribosomes are synthesizing membrane protein.     

铅胁迫对玉米幼苗叶片光系统功能及光合作用的影响

通过同时测定玉米叶片的叶绿素荧光快速诱导动力学曲线和对820 nm光的吸收、分析叶片的气体交换过程以及叶绿体活性氧清除关键酶的活性,研究了不同浓度的铅(Pb)胁迫对玉米光系统Ⅰ(PSⅠ)、光系统Ⅱ(PSⅡ)的光化学活性和光合作用的影响,并分析了Pb胁迫下两个光系统的相互关系.结果表明:铅胁迫显著抑制了玉米地上部分和地下部分的生长、降低了叶片光合色素含量、并通过非气孔因素限制了光合作用、导致过剩激发能的增加;铅胁迫显著抑制了超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)和抗坏血酸过氧化物酶(APX)的活性、伤害了PSII反应中心、PSII的受体侧和供体侧(放氧复合体)以及PSI光化学活性.     

Photochemical systems in mesophyll and bundle sheath chloroplasts of C4 plants

1. The agranal bundle sheath chloroplasts of Sorghum bicolor possess very low Photosystem II activity compared with the grana-containing mesophyll chloroplasts.

2. Sorghum mesophyll chloroplasts have a chlorophyll (chl) and carotenoid composition similar to that of spinach chloroplasts. In contrast, the sorghum bundle sheath chloroplasts have a higher chl a/chl b ratio; they are enriched in β-carotene and contain relatively less xanthophylls as compared to sorghum mesophyll or spinach chloroplasts.

3. Sorghum mesophyll chloroplasts with 1 cytochrome f, 2 cytochrome b₆ and 2 cytochrome b-559 per 430 chlorophylls have a cytochrome composition similar to spinach chloroplasts. Sorghum bundle sheath chloroplasts contain cytochrome f and cytochrome b₆ in the same molar ratios as for the mesophyll chloroplasts, but cytochrome b-559 is barely detectable.

4. The chl/P700 ratios of mesophyll chloroplasts of S. bicolor and mesophyll and bundle sheath chloroplasts of Atriplex spongiosa are similar to that of spinach chloroplasts suggesting that these chloroplasts possess an identical photosynthetic unit size to that of spinach. The agranal bundle sheath chloroplasts of S. bicolor possess a photosynthetic unit which contains only about half as many chlorophyll molecules per P700 as found in the grana-containing chloroplasts.

5. The similarity of the composition of the bundle sheath chloroplasts of S. bicolor with that of the Photosystem I subchloroplast fragments, together with their smaller photosynthetic unit and low Photosystem II activities suggests that these chloroplasts are highly deficient in the pigment assemblies of Photosystem II.     

Adhesion between liposomes mediated by the chlorophyll a/b light- harvesting complex isolated from chloroplast membranes

A highly purified chlorophyll a/b light-harvesting complex (chl a/b LHC; chl a/b ratio 1.2) was obtained from Triton-solubilized chloroplast membranes of pea and barley according to the method of Burke et al. (1978, Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 187: 252--263). Gel electrophoresis of the cation-precipitated chl a/b LHC from peas reveals the presence of four polypeptides in the 23- to 28-kdalton size range. Three of these peptides appear to be identical to those derived from re-electrophoresed CPII and CPII* bands. In freeze-fracture replicas, the cation-precipitated chl a/b LHC appears as a semicrystalline aggregate of membranous sheets containing closely spaced granules. Upon removal of the cations by dialysis, the aggregates break up into their constituent membranous sheets without changing their granular substructure. These membranous sheets can be resolubilized in 1.5% Triton X-100, and the chl a/b LHC particles then reconstituted into soybean lecithin liposomes. Freeze-fracture micrographs of the reconstituted chl a/b LHC vesicles suspended in a low salt medium reveal randomly dispersed approximately 80-A particles on both concave and convex fracture faces as well as some crystalline particle arrays, presumably resulting from incompletely solubilized fragments of the membranous sheets. Based on the approximately 80-A diameter of the particles, and on the assumption that one freeze- fracture particle represents the structural unit of one chl a/b LHC aggregate, a theoretical mol wt of approximately 200 kdalton has been calculated for the chl a/b LHC. Deep-etching and negative-staining techniques reveal that the chl a/b LHC particles are also exposed on the surface of the bilayer membranes. Addition of greater than or equal to 2 mM MgCl2 or greater than or equal to 60 mM NaCl to the reconstituted vesicles leads to their aggregation and, with divalent cations, to the formation of extensive membrane stacks. At the same time, the chl a/b LHC particles become clustered into the adhering membrane regions. Under these conditions the particles in adjacent membranes usually become precisely aligned. Evidence is presented to aupport the hypothesis that adhesion between the chl a/b LHC particles is mediated by hydrophobic interactions, and that the cations are needed to neutralize surface charges on the particles.     

Entropy-assisted stacking of thylakoid membranes

Chloroplasts in plants and some green algae contain a continuous thylakoid membrane system that is structurally differentiated into stacked granal membranes interconnected by unstacked thylakoids, the stromal lamellae. Experiments were conducted to test the hypothesis that the thermodynamic tendency to increase entropy in chloroplasts contributes to thylakoid stacking to form grana. We show that the addition of bovine serum albumin or dextran, two very different water-soluble macromolecules, to a suspension of envelope-free chloroplasts with initially unstacked thylakoids induced thylakoid stacking. This novel restacking of thylakoids occurred spontaneously, accompanied by lateral segregation of PSII from PSI, thereby mimicking the natural situation. We suggest that such granal formation, induced by the macromolecules, is partly explained as a means of generating more volume for the diffusion of macromolecules in a crowded stromal environment, i.e., greater entropy overall. This mechanism may be relevant in vivo where the stroma has a very high concentration of enzymes of carbon metabolism, and where high metabolic fluxes are required.