A nuclear mutant of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii defective in photosynthetic photophosphorylation. Characterization of the algal coupling factor ATPase

Use of the Flagyl selection procedure [Schmidt et al. (1977) Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA, 74, 610-614] led to the isolation of a nuclear mutant of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii designated thm-24. This mutant displays normal electron transport rates in vitro, possesses high latent ATPase activity bound to the thylakoid membrane, but is incapable of photophosphorylation. Decay of the transmembrane potential, as indicated by the kinetics of the 520-nm absorption change after illumination, is unusually slow and markedly biphasic. Sodium dodecylsulfate/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of purified thylakoid membranes shows mutant thm-24 to be lacking a number of polypeptides including those previously designated 4.1, 4.2 and 8.1. Treatment of purified thylakoid membranes of wild-type and mutant algae, using the chloroform-release procedure of Beechey et al. [(1975) Biochem. J. 148, 533-537] resulted in the removal of ATPase activity from each strain. In wild-type cells, the ATPase activity was of heterogeneous enzymatic origin; fractionation of the chloroform-release extracts by non-denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis yielded three distinct bands displaying ATPase activity, designated ATPases I, II and III. In contrast, extracts from membranes of mutant thm-24 yielded only one ATPase-containing fraction, co-migrating with ATPase I from wild-type. Use of electrophoretic, immunological and enzymatic methods established a correspondence of the polypeptide subunits of ATPases II and III and those of spinach coupling factor, CF1. ATPase I from either algal strain was shown to be structurally distinct from high plant CF1 and to C. reinhardtii ATPases II and III.     

Identification of mitochondrial proteins in membrane preparations from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.

Preparations enriched in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii thylakoids have proven useful in the study of photosynthesis. Many of their polypeptides however remain unidentified. We report here on three of those, h1 (34 kDa), h2 (11 kDa), and P3 (63 kDa). h1, h2, and P3 are present in all tested mutants of C. reinhardtii lacking either one or several of the photosynthetic chain complexes or depleted in thylakoid membranes. h2 is an ascorbate-reducible, soluble c550-type cytochrome encoded in the nucleus. It cross-reacts immunologically with mitochondrial cytochromes c from various sources and contains a hexapeptide encoded in C. reinhardtii cytochrome c cDNA. P3, a nuclear-encoded peripheral protein, cross-reacts with various ATP synthase beta subunits. Its N-terminal sequence is encoded in C. reinhardtii mitochondrial beta subunit cDNA. h1 behaves as an integral hemoprotein; it is absent in a mitochondrial mutant that carries a deletion in apocytochrome b gene. We conclude that C. reinhardtii mitochondrial membranes copurify with thylakoid membranes. h1 is part of the cytochrome bc1 complex, h2 is cytochrome c, and P3 is the beta subunit of mitochondrial ATP synthase.     

Aspects of Subunit Interactions in the Chloroplast ATP Synthase (II. Characterization of a Chloroplast Coupling Factor 1-Subunit III Complex from Spinach Thylakoids)

A complex between chloroplast-coupling factor 1 (CF1) and subunit III of the membrane-spanning portion of the chloroplast ATP synthase (CF0), isolated as described in the accompanying paper (C.M. Wetzel and R.E. McCarty [1993] Plant Physiol 102: 241-249), has been further characterized. A comparison of the ATPase activities of CF1, CF1-subunit III, and the chloroplast ATP synthase (CF1-CF0) holoenzyme revealed that the properties of CF1-subunit III more closely resemble those of CF1-CF0 than those of CF1. In particular, the Ca2+-ATPase activity after reduction of the enzyme with dithiothreitol was much lower in CF1-subunit III and CF1-CF0 than in CF1, suggesting that the association of the inhibitory [epsilon] subunit is tightened by the presence of either CF0 or subunit III. Cold stability is a property of CF1-CF0 in thylakoid membranes. The ATPase activity of CF1 incubated in the cold in the presence of asolectin liposomes was lost more rapidly than that of either CF1-subunit III or CF1-CF0 incorporated into liposomes. Removal of the [epsilon] subunit from all three preparations resulted in marked stimulation of their ATPase activity. Although subunit III was also removed during depletion of the [epsilon] subunit, it is not known whether the two subunits interact directly. CF1 deficient in the [epsilon] subunit binds to liposomes containing either subunit III or CF0. Taken together, these results provide evidence that the association of CF1 and subunit III of CFo is specific and may play a role in enzyme regulation.     

Added subunit beta of CF1 as well as gamma/delta/epsilon restore photophosphorylation in partially CF1-depleted thylakoids.

We investigated the ability of subunits beta, gamma, delta, and epsilon of CF1, the F1-ATPase of chloroplasts, to interact with exposed CF0 in EDTA-treated, partially CF1-depleted thylakoid membranes. We measured the ability of subunits beta, gamma, delta, and epsilon to stimulate the rate of photophosphorylation under continuous light and, for subunit beta, also the ability to diminish the proton leakage through exposed CF0 by deceleration of the decay of electrochromic absorption transients under flashing light. The greatest effect was caused by subunit beta, followed by gamma/delta/epsilon. Pairwise combinations of gamma, delta, and epsilon or each of these subunits alone were only marginally effective. Subunit gamma from the thermophilic bacterium PS 3 in combination with chloroplast delta and epsilon was as effective as chloroplast gamma. The finding that the small CF1 subunits in concert and the beta subunit by itself specifically interacted with the exposed proton channel CF0, qualifies the previous concept of subunit delta acting particularly as a plug to the open CF0 channel. The interactions between the channel and the catalytic portion of the enzyme seem to involve most of the small, and at least beta of the large subunits.     

The dithiothreitol-stimulated dissociation of the chloroplast coupling factor 1 epsilon-subunit is reversible

The chloroplast coupling factor 1 complex (CF1) contains an epsilon-subunit which inhibits the CF1 ATPase activity. Chloroform treatment of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii thylakoid membranes solubilizes only forms of the enzyme which apparently lack the delta-subunit. Four interrelated observations are described in this paper. (1) The dithiothreitol- (DTT) induced ATPase activation of CF1(-delta) and the DTT-induced formation of a physically resolvable CF1(-delta,epsilon) from the CF1(-delta) precursor are compared. The similar time-courses of these two phenomena suggest that the dissociation of the epsilon-subunit is an obligatory process in the DTT-induced ATPase activation of soluble CF1. (2) The reversible dissociation of the epsilon-subunit of the CF1 is demonstrated by the exchange of subunits between distinguishable oligomers. 35S-labelled chloroplast coupling factor 1 lacking the delta and epsilon subunits [CF1(-delta,epsilon)] was added to a solution of non-radioactive coupling factor 1 lacking only the delta subunit [CF1(-delta)]. After separation of the two enzyme forms, via high resolution anion-exchange chromatography, radioactivity was detected in the chromatographic fractions containing CF1(-delta). (3) epsilon-deficient CF1 can be resolved from DTT pretreated epsilon-containing CF1 for several days after the removal of DTT. On the other hand, brief incubation of the DTT pretreated epsilon-containing CF1 with low concentrations of o-iodosobenzoate results in chromatographs containing only the peak of epsilon-containing CF1. A simple explanation for this phenomenon is that reduction of CF1 with DTT increases the apparent dissociation constant for the epsilon-subunit to an estimated 3.5 x 10(-8) M (+/- 1.0 x 10(-8) M) from a value of less than or equal to 5 x 10(-11) M for the oxidized enzyme. (4) ATPase activity data show that oxidation of the epsilon-deficient enzyme does not completely inhibit its manifest activity, but oxidation of DTT pre-treated CF1 which contains the epsilon-subunit completely inhibits manifest activity. A simple model is proposed for the influence of the oxidation state of the soluble enzyme on the distribution of ATPase-inactive and ATPase-active subunit configurations.     

The 55-kDa polypeptide released from spinach thylakoid membranes with 1 M LiCl is not the beta subunit of chloroplast F1

It was reported by Frasch et al. (Frasch, W. D., Green, J., Caguiat, J., and Mejia, A. (1989) J. Biol. Chem. 264, 5064-5069) that washing spinach thylakoid membranes with 1 M LiCl caused the release of the beta subunit of chloroplast F1 (CF1) which, existing as 180-kDa complexes of beta 3, retained considerable ATPase activity. We repeated their procedures and confirmed that a CF1 beta-like 55-kDa polypeptide was a major constituent of the 1 M LiCl-washed extract. However, the extract contained another polypeptide of which the Mr was 14,000, and these two polypeptides comprised a complex with approximate Mr 550,000 that had the same mobility in native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis as that of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase. Only very low ATPase activity, less than 1% of the reported value, was detected for the extract and the purified complex. Antibody against the beta subunit of F1 from a thermophilic bacterium PS3 showed a clear cross-reactivity with the CF1 beta subunit but not with the 55-kDa polypeptide. Analysis of the N-terminal amino acid sequences of the 55- and 14-kDa polypeptides and the whole complex revealed that the complex was ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase and that the 55- and 14-kDa polypeptides were its large and small subunits, respectively.     

The C-terminal domain of the epsilon subunit of the chloroplast ATP synthase is not required for ATP synthesis

The epsilon subunit of the ATP synthases from chloroplasts and Escherichia coli regulates the activity of the enzyme and is required for ATP synthesis. The epsilon subunit is not required for the binding of the catalytic portion of the chloroplast ATP synthase (CF1) to the membrane-embedded part (CFo). Thylakoid membranes reconstituted with CF1 lacking its epsilon subunit (CF1-epsilon) have high ATPase activity and no ATP synthesis activity, at least in part because the membranes are very leaky to protons. Either native or recombinant epsilon subunit inhibits ATPase activity and restores low proton permeability and ATP synthesis. In this paper we show that recombinant epsilon subunit from which 45 amino acids were deleted from the C-terminus is as active as full-length epsilon subunit in restoring ATP synthesis to membranes containing CF1-epsilon. However, the truncated form of the epsilon subunit was significantly less effective as an inhibitor of the ATPase activity of CF1-epsilon, both in solution and bound to thylakoid membranes. Thus, the C-terminus of the epsilon subunit is more involved in regulation of activity, by inhibiting ATP hydrolysis, than in ATP synthesis.     

In vitro synthesis and assembly of the peripheral subunits of coupling factor CF1 (alpha and beta) by thylakoid-bound ribosomes

Bispecific antisera were prepared to a mixture of thylakoid membrane polypeptides 4.1 and 4.2. The identity of these polypeptides as the alpha and beta subunits of coupling factor (CF1) was established based on the cross-reactivity of the antisera toward CF1 from peas and by an analysis of the thm-24 mutant of Chlamydomonas which lacks the CF1 ATPase. Photochemical labeling of thylakoid membranes with hydrophobic and hydrophilic fluorescent probes indicated that these polypeptides did not significantly penetrate the membrane bilayer. Immunoprecipitation of the translation products of thylakoid-bound and soluble ribosomes showed the thylakoids to be the major site of synthesis of the polypeptides. Immunoprecipitation of the products of translation of total cellular RNA in a reticulocyte lysate showed no evidence for substantially higher molecular weight precursors. Further analysis of the thylakoid-bound synthesis of alpha and beta revealed that some of the in vitro synthesized polypeptides had been incorporated into the CF0-CF1 complex based on their release from membranes with trypsin and copurification with the CF0-CF1 ATPase.     

Chloroplast ATP synthase contains one single copy of subunit delta that is indispensable for photophosphorylation

F0F1 ATP synthases synthesize ATP in their F1 portion at the expense of free energy supplied by proton flow which enters the enzyme through their channel portion F0. The smaller subunits of F1, especially subunit delta, may act as energy transducers between these rather distant functional units. We have previously shown that chloroplast delta, when added to thylakoids partially depleted of the coupling factor CF1, can reconstitute photophosphorylation by inhibiting proton leakage through exposed coupling factor CF0. In view of controversies in the literature, we reinvestigated two further aspects related to subunit delta, namely (a) its stoichiometry in CF0CF1 and (b) whether or not delta is required for photophosphorylation. By rocket immunoelectrophoresis of thylakoid membranes and calibration against purified delta, we confirmed a stoichiometry of one delta per CF0CF1. In CF1-depleted thylakoids photophosphorylation could be reconstituted not only by adding CF1 and subunit delta but, surprisingly, also by CF1 (-delta). We found that the latter was attributable to a contamination of CF1 (-delta) preparations with integral CF1. To lesser extent CF1 (-delta) acted by complementary rebinding to CF0 channels that were closed because they contained delta [CF0(+delta)]. This added catalytic capacity to proton-tight thylakoid vesicles. The ability of subunit delta to control proton flow through CF0 and the absolute requirement for delta in restoration of photophosphorylation suggest an essential role of this small subunit at the interface between the large portions of ATP synthase: delta may be part of the coupling site between electrochemical, conformational and chemical events in this enzyme.     

Effect of proteolytic digestion on the Ca2+-ATPase activity and subunits of latent and thiol-activated chloroplast coupling factor 1

The activation by proteases of the Ca2+-dependent ATPase of chloroplast coupling factor 1 (CF1) has been investigated. Using low concentrations of papain and trypsin, the increase in ATPase activity and the degradation of the five subunits of CF1 were compared. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-gel electrophoresis of protease-treated CF1 revealed that the delta subunit was very rapidly degraded and that the alpha and beta subunits were clipped. The gamma and epsilon subunits were more resistant to digestion. The modification of the alpha subunit of latent CF1 most closely correlated with the activation of Ca2+-ATPase activity. Trypsin treatment of dithiothreitol-activated CF1 resulted in a very rapid increase in Ca2+-ATPase activity and a corresponding rapid cleavage of the gamma subunit to a 25,000-dalton species. With more prolonged treatment, the 25,000-dalton species was cleaved to fragments of 14,000 and 11,000-daltons. Dithiothreitol treatment did not alter the rate of attack on the other subunits. The gamma subunit of heat-activated CF1 was also more susceptible to protease digestion. The increased protease sensitivity of the gamma subunit of soluble CF1 after treatment with dithiothreitol or heat mimics the increased protease sensitivity of the gamma subunit of bound CF1 when thylakoids are treated with trypsin during illumination (Moroney, J. V., and McCarty, R. E. (1982) J. Biol. Chem. 257, 5915-5920). These results suggest that the conformational changes that occur when purified CF1 is exposed to dithiothreitol are similar to those that CF1 bound to thylakoid membranes undergoes under illumination.     

Inhibition of chloroplast ATPase by the K+ channel blocker alpha-dendrotoxin.

Possible structural and functional similarities between the channel part, CF0, of chloroplast ATPase (CF0CF1) and ion channels permeable to monovalent cations were investigated using high-affinity toxins mainly targeted against voltage-sensitive K+ channels. In particular, the effect of the K(+)-channel blocker alpha-dendrotoxin and the crude scorpion venom of Leiurus quinquestriatus hebraeus (LQ venom) on ATP synthesis in thylakoid membranes and in CF0CF1-containing liposomes was characterised. Alpha-dendrotoxin (K(i) approximately 5.05 microM) and the LQ venom (K(i) approximately 1.55 micrograms/ml) specifically inhibited ATP synthesis in thylakoid membranes and in CF0CF1-containing liposomes. Our results show that alpha-dendrotoxin and peptides of the LQ venom with an apparent molecular mass of about 4.0 kDa, probably isoforms of charybdotoxin, specifically bind to CF0CF1. This binding was reversible and induced a high leak conductance for H+ through CF0. The Ca(2+)-dependent ATPase activity of the isolated soluble part of CF0CF1 (CF1) was completely inhibited by 1 microM alpha-dendrotoxin, while the crude LQ venom, at concentrations up to 10 micrograms/ml, had no affect on ATPase activity. The concentration dependence of the inhibition by alpha-dendrotoxin indicates that approximately 2 mol alpha-dendrotoxin bind/mol CF0CF1 and 1 mol alpha-dendrotoxin/mol CF1. Known inhibitors of H(+)-flow-through CF0 acted in the presence of alpha-dendrotoxin synergistically. Dicyclohexylcarbodiimide and venturicidin, in contrast to their known effect of blocking H(+)-flow-through CF0, increased the leak conductance through CF0 in the presence of alpha-dendrotoxin drastically. This uncoupling effect indicates that their normal mode of blocking is a secondary effect. Binding of the inhibitors to their respective sites apparently does not affect the proton pathway in CF0, but induces a conformation which closes the channel part for H+. Protein sequence comparison between the known binding site of charybdotoxin in the shaker K+ channel from Drosophila [MacKinnon, R. & Heginbotham, L. (1990) Neuron 5, 767-771] and the choroplast ATPase showed that subunit III reveals a significant similarity (64%) in parts of its sequence (Gln28-Leu53) to the helix 5 and helix 6 (S5-S6) linker region (Ala413-Cys462; the charybdotoxin-binding site) of the shaker K+ channel. According to secondary-structure predictions, the homologous sequences in subunit III and the shaker K+ channel represent putative hydrophilic loops connecting two transmembrane alpha-helices. Apparently the shaker K+ channel and subunit III share significant topological features in these hydrophilic loops which may be part of the respective channel entrance.     

Posttranslational events leading to the assembly of photosystem II protein complex: a study using photosynthesis mutants from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

We studied the assembly of photosystem II (PSII) in several mutants from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii which were unable to synthesize either one PSII core subunit (P6 [43 kD], D1, or D2) or one oxygen-evolving enhancer (OEE1 or OEE2) subunit. Synthesis of the PSII subunits was analyzed on electrophoretograms of cells pulse labeled with [14C]acetate. Their accumulation in thylakoid membranes was studied on immunoblots, their chlorophyll-binding ability on nondenaturating gels, their assembly by detergent fractionation, their stability by pulse-chase experiments and determination of in vitro protease sensitivity, and their localization by immunocytochemistry. In Chlamydomonas, the PSII core subunits P5 (47 kD), D1, and D2 are synthesized in a concerted manner while P6 synthesis is independent. P5 and P6 accumulate independently of each other in the stacked membranes. They bind chlorophyll soon after, or concomitantly with, their synthesis and independently of the presence of the other PSII subunits. Resistance to degradation increases step by step: beginning with assembly of P5, D1, and D2, then with binding of P6, and, finally, with binding of the OEE subunits on two independent high affinity sites (one for OEE1 and another for OEE2 to which OEE3 binds). In the absence of PSII cores, the OEE subunits accumulate independently in the thylakoid lumen and bind loosely to the membranes; OEE1 was found on stacked membranes, but OEE2 was found on either stacked or unstacked membranes depending on whether or not P6 was synthesized.     

A chlorophyll-protein complex lacking in photosystem I mutants of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis of unheated, detergent-solubilized thylakoid membranes of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii gives two chlorophyll-protein complexes. Chlorophyll-protein complex I (CP I) is the blue-green in color and can be dissociated by heat into "free" chlorophyll and a constituent polypeptide (polypeptide 2; mol wt 66,000). Similar experiments with spinach and Chinese cabbage show that the higher plant CP I contains an equivalent polypeptide but of slightly lower molecular weight (64,000). Both polypeptide 2 and its counterpart in spinach are soluble in a 2:1 (vol/vol) mixture of chloroform-methanol. Chemical analysis reveals that C. reinhardtii CP I has a chlorophyll a to b weight ratio of about 5 and that it contains approximately 5% of the total chlorophyll and 8-9% of the total protein of the thylakoid membranes. Thus, it can be calculated that each constituent polypeptide chain is associated with eight to nine chlorophyll molecules. Attempts to measure the molecular weight of CP I by calibrated SDS gels were unsuccessul since the complex migrates anomalously in such gels. Two Mendelian mutants of C. reinhardtii, F1 and F14, which lack P700 but have normal photosystem I activity, do not contain CP I or the 66,000-dalton polypeptide in their thylakoid membranes. Our results suggest that CP I is essential for photosystem I reaction center activity and that P700 may be associated with the 66,000-dalton polypeptide.     

Photoaffinity labeling of the tight ADP binding site of the chloroplast coupling factor one (CF1): the effect on the CF1-ATPase activity

Chloroplast thylakoid membranes contain tightly bound ADP which is intimately involved in the mechanism of photophosphorylation. The photoaffinity analog 2-azido-ADP binds tightly to spinach thylakoid membrane-bound coupling factor one (CF1) and, in a manner similar to ADP, inhibits the light-triggered ATPase activity (Czarnecki, J.J., Abbott, M.S. and Selman, B.R. (1983) Eur. J. Biochem. 136, 19-24). Ultraviolet irradiation of thylakoid membranes containing noncovalently, tightly bound 2-azido[beta-32P]ADP results in the inactivation of both the methanol-stimulated MgATPase activity of the membrane-bound CF1 and the octylglucoside-dependent MgATPase activity of the solubilized enzyme. There is a linear correlation between the loss of enzyme activity and the covalent incorporation of the photoaffinity analog. Full inactivation of catalytic activity is estimated to occur upon incorporation of 1.07 mol analog and 0.65 mol analog per mol enzyme for the methanol- and octylglucoside-stimulated activities, respectively. Since 2-azido-ADP modifies only the beta subunit of the CF1 and since there are probably three beta subunits per CF1, these results indicate strong cooperativity among beta subunits and between the site of tightly bound nucleotides and the catalytic sites.     

Partial resolution of the enzymes catalyzing photophosphorylation. XV. Approaches to the active site of coupling factor I.

1. Prolonged treatment of coupling factor I (CF1) from spinach chloroplasts with trypsin free of chymotrypsin yielded an active ATPase. The isolated preparation showed only two polypeptide chains (mol wt 55,000 to 60,000) on acrylamide gels run in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. The three smaller subunits of CF1 were not detectable. The preparation no longer served as a coupling factor for photophosphorylation in either EDTA- or silicotungstate-treated chloroplasts. 2. An antiserum prepared against coupling factor I from chloroplasts inhibited the ATPase activity of the trypsin-treated CF1. In contrast, antisera prepared against the two individual (denatured) subunits did not inhibit the ATPase activity when tested either alone or together, although each interacted with the trypsin-treated protein, forming precipitin lines in Ouchterlony plates. 3. The trypsin-treated enzyme was still cold-labile, showing that the three smaller subunits are not required for this property. However, the enzyme was no longer sensitive to the natural inhibitor protein which is one of its subunits (subunit epislon), but was still sensitive to inhibition by the flavonoid quercetin. 4. Two equivalents of 7-chloro-4-nitrobenzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole were sufficient to inhibit about 80% of the ATPase activity of the coupling factor, irrespective of whether it contained two of five subunits. The inhibition was completely reversed by dithiothreitol. 5. Triated 7-chloro-4-nitrobenzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole was prepared. Treatment of the coupling factor with this tritium-labeled inhibitor followed by electrophoresis on acrylamide gels revealed that most of the radioactivity was incorporated into the beta subunit of the enzyme (molecular weight 56,000).     

Delta subunit of chloroplast coupling factor 1 inhibits proton leakage through coupling factor O

The ATP synthase of chloroplasts consists of a proton-conducting portion, CF0, and a catalytic portion, CF1. The smaller subunits of CF1, in particular delta, may play a key role in the coupling of proton transport to ATP synthesis. Purified subunit delta, when added to partially CF1-depleted thylakoid membranes, can restore photophosphorylation (Engelbrecht, S., and Junge, W. (1987) Eur. J. Biochem. 172, 213-218). We report here that it does so by blocking proton conduction through CF0. Thylakoids were CF1-depleted by incubation in hypoosmolar NaCl/EDTA solutions. Variation of the NaCl concentrations and of the incubation times not only changed the overall degree of CF1 depletion but also the subunit composition of solubilized CF1, namely CF1 containing delta and CF1(-delta). This was quantified by immunoelectrophoresis and by fast protein liquid chromatography. Proton conduction was measured by flash spectrophotometry by using standard electrochromic and pH-indicating absorption changes. The removal of integral CF1 was correlated with high electric conductance of thylakoid membranes, an increased extent of rapid proton leakage, and loss of ATP synthesis activity, which exceeded the percentual loss of CF1. The removal of predominantly CF1(-delta) resulted in comparatively lesser effects on the loss of ATP synthesis and on the extent and velocity of proton leakage. On the same line, addition of integral CF1 and of purified delta diminished the electric leak in CF1-depleted thylakoids. Both approaches, the controlled removal of CF1 and CF1(-delta), respectively, and addition of delta and CF1 showed that delta can act as a "stopcock" to the exposed proton channel CF0.     

Exposure of free amino groups in the coupling factor of energized spinach chloroplasts.

Spinach chloroplasts were incubated in the dark with methyl acetimidate in order to amidinate and thereby protect free amino groups. An energy-dependent attack on the coupling factor (CF1) of these amidinated chloroplasts by trinitrobenzenesulfonate was apparent in a second reaction, as long as the reagent was applied in the light or after an acid-base transition. Trinitrophenyl residues approached one each on the alpha and beta subunits, and two to three on the gamma subunit polypeptide of CF1. Accompanying trinitrophenylation was an inhibition of the ATPase activity of CF1 due to a major decrease in the affinity for ATP; however, neither the maximal ATPase rate nor the ability of the protein to serve as a coupling factor for EDTA-extracted chloroplasts was affected. Trinitrophenylation and consequent inhibition of ATPase were 50% prevented by the presence of phosphate, or ADP, or ATP during exposure to trinitrobenzenesulfonate. The protective effects of adenylates were additive with those of phosphate. The ratio of trinitrophenyl groups on the three subunits concerned was the same whether phosphate or ATP was providing 50% protection, or whether neither was present. It is inferred that a conformational change occurs in the amidinated coupling factor when a proton activity gradient is placed across the membranes, and effective ligands tend to prevent the resulting exposure of free amino groups from a previously hidden location.     

Molecular dissection of the epsilon subunit of the chloroplast ATP synthase of spinach.

The gene encoding the epsilon subunit (atpE) of the chloroplast ATP synthase of Spinacia oleracea has been overexpressed in Escherichia coli. The recombinant protein can be solubilized in 8 M urea and directly diluted into buffer containing ethanol and glycerol to obtain epsilon that is as biologically active as epsilon purified from chloroplast-coupling factor 1 (CF1). Recombinant epsilon folded in this manner inhibits the ATPase activity of soluble and membrane-bound CF1 deficient in epsilon and restores proton impermeability to thylakoid membranes reconstituted with CF1 deficient in epsilon. Site-directed mutagenesis was used to generate truncations and single amino acid substitutions in the primary structure of epsilon. In the five mutants tested, alterations that weaken ATPase inhibition by recombinant epsilon affect its ability to restore proton impermeability to a similar extent, with one exception. Substitution of histidine-37 with arginine appears to uncouple ATPase inhibition and the restoration of proton impermeability. As in the case of E. coli, it appears that N-terminal truncations of the epsilon subunit have more profound effects than C-terminal deletions on the function of epsilon. Recombinant epsilon with six amino acids deleted from the C terminus, which is the only region of significant mismatch between the epsilon of spinach and the epsilon of Pisum sativum, inhibits ATPase activity with a reduced potency similar to that of purified pea epsilon. Four of the six amino acids are serine or threonine. These hydroxylated amino acids may be important in epsilon-CF1 interactions.     

Influences of energization and nucleotide binding on the reaction of Lucifer Yellow vinyl sulfone with the alpha subunits of the chloroplast ATP synthase

The catalytic portion of the chloroplast ATP synthase (CF(1)) consists of five different polypeptides in the stoichiometry alpha(3)beta(3)gammadeltaepsilon and is structurally asymmetric. Asymmetry is readily apparent in the properties of the six nucleotide binding sites and the single-copy, smaller subunits. Asymmetry is also detected in the alpha subunits by the rapid and covalent binding of Lucifer Yellow vinyl sulfone (LY) to one of the three chemically identical alpha subunits. The binding of LY to a single alpha subunit has allowed the investigation of whether asymmetry in the alpha subunits is a permanent feature of CF(1). The development of an electrochemical proton gradient across illuminated thylakoid membranes and the preincubation of CF(1) in solution with Mg(2+)-ATP were found to alter the LY distribution such that multiple alpha subunits were labeled with LY. Illumination of thylakoid membranes doubled the extent of LY labeling, and fluorescence resonance energy transfer measurements indicated that LY was bound to more than one alpha subunit. Since the change in LY distribution was inhibited by proton ionophores (uncouplers), alteration of alpha conformation by illumination is a result of the generation of a proton gradient. Preincubation of CF(1) in solution with Mg(2+)-ATP had no effect on the extent of LY labeling but resulted in multiple alpha subunits binding LY as determined by fluorescence resonance energy transfer measurements. Adenine nucleotides at substrate level concentrations inhibit the reaction of LY with the alpha subunits. No increase in LY labeling was observed when thylakoids were illuminated under conditions in which CF(1) was catalytically active.