Glutamine Synthetase/Glutamine: alpha-Ketoglutarate Aminotransferase in Chloroplasts from the Marine Alga Caulerpa simpliciuscula

The enzymic capacities for ammonia assimilation into amino acids have been investigated in chloroplasts from the siphonous green alga Caulerpa simpliciuscula (Turner) C. Ag. The results show that these chloroplasts differ from those of higher plants in having present simultaneously the enzymic capacities to permit assimilation of ammonia by two pathways. Glutamine synthetase (EC 6.3.1.2) activity at levels up to 4 μmoles per mg chlorophyll per hour were found in soluble extracts of the chloroplasts. Glutamine(amide):α-ketoglutarate aminotransferase (oxidoreductase ferredoxin) (EC 1.4.7.1) activity at levels up to 1.4 μmoles per mg chlorophyll per hour was detected by incubation of photosynthetically active chloroplasts either in light or with reduced ferredoxin. Together these enzymes provide the capacity for the conventional pathway of ammonium assimilation in chloroplasts via glutamine. A similar level of a glutamate dehydrogenase with an unusually low K_m for ammonia which has been described previously in these chloroplasts provides the second potential pathway.     

水稻温敏叶绿素突变体叶片超微结构的研究

对温敏转绿型叶绿素突变体1103S和武金4B“斑马叶”性状表达过程中叶绿素含量、叶绿体超微结构的变化进行了比较研究。结果表明,在一定条件下,叶片的失绿、复绿与叶绿素含量的下降、上升变化趋势一致;叶绿体结构在失绿区表现为严重退化,基粒和基粒片层减少,淀粉粒和嗜锇粒增多;复绿后,其叶绿体结构重建和恢复     

Improvement in separation of system I and system II particles of photosynthesis obtained by digitonin treatment

By a combined use of digitonin treatment and subsequent centrifugation on a linear sucrose density gradient, the whole green material of the chloroplast lamellae was separated into System I and System II particle fractions, leaving no other fractions of intermediate properties at the final step of separation.

Each of these particle fractions obtained had properties characteristic of System I or System II with respect to the molar ratio of chlorophyll a/chlorophyll b, the content of P700, the fluorescence emission spectrum at −196°;, photoreduction activities with ferricyanide and NADP⁺, and induction of fluorescence.

About 40 and 50% of the total chlorophyll in the original chloroplasts were recovered in System I and System II particles, respectively. Only small amounts of total chlorophyll (less than 10%) were found as free chlorophyll detached from the lamellae through the digitonin treatment.

These results support the view that the lamellae of chloroplasts are composed of about equal amounts of System I and System II particles on a chlorophyll basis.     

The Effect of Antibiotics on the Ultrastructure and Photochemical Activity of a Developing Chloroplast

The effects of the antibiotics chloramphenicol and cycloheximideon the ultrastructure of the chloroplast in greening cells ofEuglena gracilis strain Z have been investigated. The rate ofchloroplaat development in the presence of either antibioticwas closely related to that of chlorophyll production. Chloramphenicol,which at 10 mg/ml inhibits chlorophyll synthesis but not celldivision, caused a marked inhibition of the development of chloroplaststructure. The chloroplasts were smaller than those of untreatedcells and contained a smaller number of internal lamellae. Mostof these lamellae were not appressed and the results supportthe suggestion that chloramphenicol inhibits the synthesis ofa protein responsible for the fusion of individual lamellaein the chloroplast. Measurement of the photochemical activityof chloroplasts isolated from chloramphenicol-treated cellsshowed that the photoreduction of NADP from water (photosystemI+II), photosystem II activity, and photosystem I activity weregreatly inhibited when compared with chloroplasts from untreatedcells. In contrast, cycloheximide at 2.5 to 5.0 µg/mlinhibited cell division but allowed the chloroplasts to developafter a lag phase, the length of which was related to the concentrationof antibiotic employed. The number of lamellae per chloroplastand the degree of appression of the lamellae in chloroplastsof cycloheximide-treated cells and untreated cells were comparable.After 48-h illumination the photochemical activities of chloroplastsisolated from cycloheximide-treated cells were about 50 percent of those of the untreated cells.     

Light-dependent changes of the Mg2+ concentration in the stroma in relation to the Mg2+ dependency of CO2 fixation in intact chloroplasts.

(1) Light-dependent changes of the Mg2+ content of thylakoid membranes were measured at pH 8.0 and compared with earlier measurements at pH 6.6. In a NaCl and KCl medium, the light-dependent decrease in the Mg2+ content of the thylakoid membranes at pH 8.0 is found to be 23 nmol Mg2+ per mg chlorophyll, whereas in a sorbitol medium it is 83 nmol Mg2+ per mg chlorophyll. (2) A light dependent increase in the Mg2+ content of the stroma was detected wjem chloroplasts were subjected to osmotic shock, amounting to 26 nmol/mg chlorophyll. Furthermore, a rapid and reversible light-dependent efflux of Mg2+ has been observed in intact chloroplasts when the divalent cation ionophore A 23 187 was added, indicating a light-dependent transfer of about 60 nmol of Mg2+ per mg chlorophyll from the thylakoid membranes to the stroma. (3) CO2 fixation, but not phosphoglycerate reduction, could be completely inhibited when A 23 187 was added to intact chloroplasts in the absence of external Mg2+. If Mg2+ was then added to the medium, CO2 fixation was restored. Half of the maximal restoration was achieved with about 0.2 mM Mg2+, which is calculated to reflect a Mg2+ concentration in the stroma of 1.2 mM. The further addition of Ca2+ strongly inhibits CO2 fixation. (4) The results suggest that illumination of intact chloroplasts causes an increase in the Mg2+ concentration of 1-3 mM in the stroma. Compared to the total Mg2+ content of chloroplasts, this increase is very low, but it appears to be high enough to have a possible function in the light regulation of CO2 fixation.     

Carbonic Anhydrase Activity in Isolated Chloroplasts of Wild-Type and High-CO2-Dependent Mutants of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii as Studied by a New Assay

In an assay of carbonic anhydrase (CA), NAH14CO3 soltution at the bottom of a sealed vessel releases 14CO2, which diffuses to the top of the vessel to be assimilated by photosynthesizing Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cells that have been adapted to a low-CO2 environment. The assay is initiated by illuminating the cells and is stopped by turning the light off and killing the cells with acid. Enzyme activity was estimated from acid-stable radioactivity. With bovine CA, 1.5 Wilbur-Anderson units (WAU) was consistently measured at 5- to 6-fold above background. Sonicated whole cells of air-adapted wild-type C. reinhardtii had 740 [plus or minus] 12.4 WAU/mg chlorophyll (Chl). Sonicated chloroplasts from a mixotrophically grown wall-less strain, cw-15, had 35.5 [plus or minus] 2.6 WAU/mg Chl, whereas chloroplasts from wall-less external CA mutant strain cia5/cw-15 had 33.8 [plus or minus] 1.9 WAU/mg Chl. Sonicated chloroplasts from the wall-less mutant strain cia-3/cw-15, believed to lack an internal CA, had 2.8 [plus or minus] 3.2 WAU/mg Chl. Sonicated whole cells from cia3/cw-15 had 2.8 [plus or minus] 7.8 WAU/mg Chl. Acetazolamide, ethoxyzolamide, and p-aminomethylbenzene sulfonamide (Mafenide) at 100 [mu]M inhibited CA in sonicated chloroplasts from cia-5/cw-15. Treatment at 80[deg]C for 10 min inhibited this CA activity by 90.8 [plus or minus] 3.6%. Thus, a sensitive 14C assay has confirmed the presence of a CA in cw-15 and cia-5/cw-15 chloroplasts and the lack of a CA in cia-3/cw-15 chloroplasts. Our results indicate that HCO3- is the inorganic carbon species that is accumulated by chloroplasts of Chlamydomonas and that chloroplastic CA is responsible for the majority of internal CA activity.     

SUBMICROSCOPIC STRUCTURE AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHLOROPLASTS OF PSILOTUM TRIQUETRUM

Sun , C. N. (Washington U., St. Louis, Mo.) Submicroscopic structure and development of the chloroplasts of Psilotum triquetrum. Amer. Jour. Bot. 48(4): 311–315. Illus. 1961.—Aerial stems and stem tips of Psilotum triquetrum were used for the study of the fine structure and development of chloroplasts. The chloroplasts of Psilotum are ellipsoidal, with a principal axis of approximately 13 μ and a short axis of approximately 3.6 μ. They are bounded by a well-defined outer membrane which consists of 2 layers. Within the laminar system of the stroma, the lamellated grana appear as sharply defined regions. The grana are about 1–1.6 μ in diameter. They are distributed more or less uniformly throughout the entire chloroplast with the exception of a very narrow peripheral zone. Relatively large, osmiophilic globules occur in groups in the stroma. The development of the Psilotum chloroplast may be summarized as follows: (1) in the undifferentiated proplastid, vesicles occur; (2) lamellated layers are formed by the fusion of vesicles; (3) the lamellae multiply by a process of thickening and splitting; (4) the grana are differentiated within a certain area by heterogeneous deposition of material and by further cleavage of the lamellae. Osmiophilic globules are present throughout the developmental stages, and increase in number and size with increase in age of the chloroplast.     

Light-dependent changes of the Mg concentration in the stroma in relation to the Mg dependency of CO2 fixation in intact chloroplasts

(1) Light-dependent changes of the Mg²⁺ content of thylakoid membranes were measured at pH 8.0 and compared with earlier measurements at pH 6.6. In a NaCl and KCl medium, the light-dependent decrease in the Mg²⁺ content of the thylakoid membranes at pH 8.0 is found to be 23 nmol Mg²⁺ per mg chlorophyll, whereas in a sorbitol medium it is 83 nmol Mg₂₊ per mg chlorophyll.

(2) A light dependent increase in the Mg²⁺ content of the stroma was detected when chloroplasts were subjected to osmotic shock, amounting to 26 nmol/mg chlorophyll. Furthermore, a rapid and reversible light-dependent efflux of Mg²⁺ has been observed in intact chloroplasts when the divalent cation ionophore A 23 187 was added, indicating a light-dependent transfer of about 60 nmol of Mg²⁺ per mg chlorophyll from the thylakoid membranes to the stroma.

(3) CO₂ fixation, but not phosphoglycerate reduction, could be completely inhibited when A 23 187 was added to intact chloroplasts in the absence of external Mg²⁺. If Mg²⁺ was then added to the medium, CO₂ fixation was restored. Half of the maximal restoration was achieved with about 0.2 mM Mg²⁺, which is calculated to reflect a Mg²⁺ concentration in the stroma of 1.2 mM. The further addition of Ca²⁺ strongly inhibits CO₂ fixation.

(4) The results suggest that illumination of intact chloroplasts causes an increase in the Mg²⁺ concentration of 1–3 mM in the stroma. Compared to the total Mg²⁺ content of chloroplasts, this increase is very low, but it appears to be high enough to have a possible function in the light regulation of CO₂ fixation.     

Quantitative determination of coupling factor CF1 of chloroplasts

Repeated washes of isolated chloroplasts with dilute sodium pyrophosphate solution results in the removal of carboxydismutase and some minor proteins from the thylakoid membranes. A subsequent treatment of the membranes with hypertonic sucrose solution yields pure coupling factor CF₁ in the supernatant. Purity of the protein was demonstrated by disc electrophoresis.The amount of CF₁ protein liberated was quantitatively determined. The percentage of CF₁ removed by this treatment was calculated from the Ca²⁺-dependent ATPase activity retained at the thylakoid membranes. From these data the total CF₁ content of chloroplasts was calculated. An average value of 0.42 mg CF₁ protein/mg chlorophyll was obtained. Based on a molecular weight for CF₁ of 326000 (see Farron, F. (1970) Biochemistry 9, 3823–3828), a ratio of 1 mole CF₁ per 860 moles chlorophyll was computed.     

THE GREENING OF ETIOLATED BEAN LEAVES AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHLOROPLAST FINE STRUCTURE IN ABSENCE OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS

CMU inhibits oxygen evolution in greening etiolated bean leaves.In the presence of this compound chlorophyll content is reducedand fine structure development of the chloroplasts is markedlyaffected. The number of grana per chloroplast is reduced butthe grana are larger and contain more thylakoids than the granain chloroplasts of the greening control leaves. Sucrose reversesthe effect of CMU on pigment content and fine structure developmentof chloroplasts. (Received September 14, 1965; )     

Sulphydryl groups in photosynthetic energy conservation. I. Light-dependent inhibition of photophosphorylation by the sulphydryl reagent 2-2'dithio bis-(5-nitropyridine).

1. The sulphydryl reagent 2-2'dithio bis-(5-nitropyridine) (DTNP) inhibited photophosphorylation when the chloroplasts were preincubated with the reagent in the light. A maximum inhibition of about 50% was obtained in the presence of pyocyanine and MgCl 2 at 0.3 mumol DTNP per mg chlorophyll and was completed in about 40 s of preillumination. 2. Dithioerythritol, ADP plus Pi (or arsenate) and uncouplers prevented the inhibition when present during the preillumination while phloridzin, Dio-9 and discarine B were ineffective. Low concentrations of ADP or ATP afforded partial protection but other nucleotides had no effect. 3. DTNP inhibited the coupled electron transport rate to the basal level and had no effect on the uncoupled electron transport. The stimulation of proton uptake and inhibition of electron transport by ATP was prevented by DTNP. 4. The trypsin-activated but not the light- and dithioerythritol-triggered ATPase was inhibited by light preincubation of chloroplasts with DTNP. 5. Reversal of DTNP inhibition of photophosphorylation was obtained by a second preillumination in the presence of thiol groups. 6. More DTNP reacted with chloroplasts in the light than in the dark. Two mol of thione were formed in the light per mol of DTNP disappeared. 7. The results suggested that DTNP inhibition is related to the oxidation by DTNP of chloroplast vicinal dithiols probably exposed by a light-induced conformational change.     

CHLOROPLASTS OF MONOPLOID AND DIPLOID OENOTHERA HOOKERI

Comparison of leaves from diploid Oenothera hookeri plants with leaves of their monoploid derivatives revealed the following differences: the leaves of the diploids are almost twice as thick as those of the monoploids; the diploids have only one-fifth as many cells per unit leaf area as do the monoploids; leaf tissue of the diploids has an average of 36.3 chloroplasts per cell compared with 27.4 for the monoploids; chloroplasts of the diploids average 4.68 μm in length, those of the monoploids, 3.74 μm; chloroplasts from the diploids contain about seven times more chlorophyll than those of the monoploids and have an average of seven thylakoids per granum compared with an average of only three for the monoploids; the average chlorophyll a/b ratio for the diploid chloroplasts is 2.98 compared with 3.48 for the monoploids.     

Comparative ultrastructural properties of pallisade tissue and spongy tissue chloroplasts from normal and mutant leaves of Pisum sativum L.*

Abstract. The ultrastructure of chloroplasts from palisade and spongy tissue was studied in order to analyse the adaptation of chloroplasts to the light gradient within the bifacial leaves of pea. Chloroplasts of two nuclear gene mutants of Pisum sativum (chlorotica-29 and chlorophyll b-less 130A), grown under normal light conditions, were compared with the wild type (WT) garden-pea cv. ‘Dippes Gelbe Viktoria’. The differentiation of the thylakoid membrane system of plastids from normal pea leaves exhibited nearly the same degree of grana formation in palisade and in spongy tissue. Using morphometrical measurements, only a slight increase in grana stacking capacity was found in chloroplasts of spongy tissue. In contrast, chloroplasts of mutant leaves differed in grana development in palisade and spongy tissue, respectively. Their thylakoid systems appeared to be disorganized and not developed as much as in chloroplasts from normal pea leaves. Grana contained fewer lamellae per granum, the number of grana per chloroplast section was reduced and the length of appressed thylakoid regions was decreased. Nevertheless, chloroplasts of the mutants were always differentiated into grana and stroma thylakoids. The structural changes observed and the reduction of the total chlorophyll content correlated with alterations in the polypeptide composition of thylakoid membrane preparations from mutant chloroplasts. In sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), polypeptide bands with a relative molecular mass of 27 and 26 kilodalton (kD) were markedly reduced in mutant chloroplasts. These two polypeptides represented the major apoproteins of the light harvesting chlorophyll a/b complex from photosystem II (LHC-II) as inferred from a comparison with the electrophoretic mobility of polypeptides isolated from the LHC-II.     

Localization of phosphatidylcholine in outer envelope membrane of spinach chloroplasts

We have examined the effects of phospholipase C from Bacillus cereus on the extent of phospholipid hydrolysis in envelope membrane vesicles and in intact chloroplasts. When isolated envelope vesicles were incubated in presence of phospholipase C, phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylglycerol, but not phosphatidylinositol, were totally converted into diacylglycerol if they were available to the enzyme (i.e., when the vesicles were sonicated in presence of phospholipase C). These experiments demonstrate that phospholipase C can be used to probe the availability of phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylglycerol in the cytosolic leaflet of the outer envelope membrane from spinach chloroplasts. When isolated, purified, intact chloroplasts were incubated with low amounts of phospholipase C (0.3 U/mg chlorophyll) under very mild conditions (12 degrees C for 1 min), greater than 80% of phosphatidylcholine molecules and almost none of phosphatidylglycerol molecules were hydrolyzed. Since we have also demonstrated, by using several different methods (phase-contrast and electron microscopy, immunochemical and electrophoretic analyses) that isolated spinach chloroplasts, and especially their outer envelope membrane, remained intact after mild treatment with phospholipase C, we can conclude that there is a marked asymmetric distribution of phospholipids across the outer envelope membrane of spinach chloroplasts. Phosphatidylcholine, the major polar lipid of the outer envelope membrane, is almost entirely accessible from the cytosolic side of the membrane and therefore is probably localized in the outer leaflet of the outer envelope bilayer. On the contrary, phosphatidylglycerol, the major polar lipid in the inner envelope membrane and the thylakoids, is probably not accessible to phospholipase C from the cytosol and therefore is probably localized mostly in the inner leaflet of the outer envelope membrane and in the other chloroplast membranes.     

Quantification of photosystem I and II in different parts of the thylakoid membrane from spinach

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) was used to quantify Photosystem I (PSI) and PSII in vesicles originating from a series of well-defined but different domains of the thylakoid membrane in spinach prepared by non-detergent techniques. Thylakoids from spinach were fragmented by sonication and separated by aqueous polymer two-phase partitioning into vesicles originating from grana and stroma lamellae. The grana vesicles were further sonicated and separated into two vesicle preparations originating from the grana margins and the appressed domains of grana (the grana core), respectively. PSI and PSII were determined in the same samples from the maximal size of the EPR signal from P700(+) and Y(D)( .-), respectively. The following PSI/PSII ratios were found: thylakoids, 1.13; grana vesicles, 0.43; grana core, 0.25; grana margins, 1.28; stroma lamellae 3.10. In a sub-fraction of the stroma lamellae, denoted Y-100, PSI was highly enriched and the PSI/PSII ratio was 13. The antenna size of the respective photosystems was calculated from the experimental data and the assumption that a PSII center in the stroma lamellae (PSIIbeta) has an antenna size of 100 Chl. This gave the following results: PSI in grana margins (PSIalpha) 300, PSI (PSIbeta) in stroma lamellae 214, PSII in grana core (PSIIalpha) 280. The results suggest that PSI in grana margins have two additional light-harvesting complex II (LHCII) trimers per reaction center compared to PSI in stroma lamellae, and that PSII in grana has four LHCII trimers per monomer compared to PSII in stroma lamellae. Calculation of the total chlorophyll associated with PSI and PSII, respectively, suggests that more chlorophyll (about 10%) is associated with PSI than with PSII.     

小麦黄化突变体叶绿体超微结构研究

利用透射电镜对小麦自然黄化突变体及其突变亲本(西农1718)叶片细胞叶绿体的数目、形态及超微结构进行比较分析。结果发现:(1)3种不同黄化程度突变体的叶绿体分布、数目、形状及大小与突变亲本无明显差异;(2)突变体叶绿素含量为野生型58%的黄绿植株与其突变亲本叶绿体超微结构无明显差异,基质类囊体与基粒类囊体高度分化,基粒数目以及基粒片层数目较多;(3)突变体金黄和绿黄植株的叶绿素含量分别为野生型的17%、24%,其叶绿体超微结构与突变亲本明显不同,突变体的叶绿体发育存在明显缺陷,其中突变体金黄植株的叶绿体内无基粒、基质片层清晰可见,有淀粉粒,嗜锇颗粒较多,而突变体绿黄植株的叶绿体内有基粒,但明显少于突变亲本,且基粒片层较少,基质类囊体较发达。结果表明该黄化突变体叶绿体超微结构的改变,是由于叶绿素含量降低造成,推测,该黄化突变是由于叶绿素合成受阻导致的。     

Multiple sites of DCIP reduction by sonicated Oat chloroplasts: Role of plastocyanin

1. Oat chloroplasts, in the presence of 0.02 M methylamine, reduce 2,6 dichlorophenolindophenol (DCIP) at a rate of 350–500 μmoles/mg chl per h, in saturating light. Brief sonication for approx. 1 min lowers the rate to approx. 50 μmoles/mg chl per h; longer sonication does not reduce activity further. During brief sonication, plastocyanin is lost from the chloroplasts. When plastocyanin is added back to sonicated fragments, DCIP reduction is approximately doubled to 100 μmoles/mg chl per h.

2. When oxidized plastocyanin is added, a transient is observed when light is first turned on: this is due to a reduction of the plastocyanin before DCIP reduction begins. When reduced plastocyanin is added, a different transient occurs: this is due to a fast photoreduction of DCIP by the plastocyanin and is followed by the slower steady state reduction of DCIP by water. When light is turned off before complete reduction of DCIP, a transient reduction of oxidized plastocyanin by reduced DCIP is seen. Insensitivity of these transients to 3(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea (DCMU) and the greater effectiveness of 710 nm light, along with the known capacity of plastocyanin to mediate electron transfer to System I, prove that an intrinsically fast reduction of DCIP occurs at a site close to the primary photoreduced product of System I.

3. After brief sonication and washing, no residual plastocyanin was detected in chloroplast fragments, and the rate of the slow DCIP reduction (about 50μmoles/mg chl per h) sustained by such fragments was essentially identical to that maintained by fragments of mutants lacking System I activity. Following et al.⁹, the simplest explanation for this slow DCIP reduction is that is occurs at a site close to System II and the system I is not involved.

4. A very slow transient reduction of DCIP occurs after extinguishing light; this presumably involves another reduction site close to System II, as suggested by ⁹.     

Seasonal changes in the chlorophyll content and quantum efficiency of the moss Brachythecium rutabulum

Abstract

The concentration of chlorophyll a, b, and total chlorophyll have been monitored on a seasonal basis in Brachythecium rutabulum. Total chlorophyll increases during summer full canopy conditions from 1.70 mg chl g^?1 on 8 May to 11.1 mg chl g^?1 on 11 October. Photosynthetic-illumination curves show that during this period light saturation declines from 200 μmol m^?2s^?1 to 30 μmol m^?2s^?1 by 6 July, and light compensation falls dramatically from 65 μmol m^?2s^?1 to 4 μmol m^?2s^?1. The data also appear to support the conclusion that there is concurrently an increase in the density of photosynthetic units by the end of September.     

菊花黄绿叶突变体不同类型叶片的叶绿素含量和结构特征比较

以菊花黄绿叶突变体-NAu04-1-31为试验材料,测定了黄叶、黄绿叶和绿叶3种不同类型叶片的叶绿素含量,并观察比较了叶片的显微与超微解剖结构.叶绿素含量测定表明:黄叶、黄绿叶的叶绿素含量显著低于绿叶,而黄叶叶绿素a与叶绿素b的比值大于绿叶.叶绿体显微与超微结构观察发现:黄叶细胞内叶绿体形状不规1则,缺乏正常的叶绿体膜结构,无类囊体,无淀粉粒,嗜锇颗粒较多;黄绿叶叶片栅栏组织绿色部分与绿叶的栅栏组织相似,黄色部分与黄叶的栅栏组织棚似,黄色部分的海绵组织中有类似于绿色叶片的海绵组织结构,而绿色部分含有类似于黄叶的海绵组织的结构特征.绿叶细胞内叶绿体较多,形状规则,基粒片层清晰,其内淀粉粒多而大,嗜锇颗粒较少.     

Photosynthesis by isolated protoplasts, protoplast extracts, and chloroplasts of wheat: influence of orthophosphate, pyrophosphate, and adenylates

Protoplasts, protoplast extracts (intact chloroplasts plus extrachloroplastic material), and chloroplasts isolated from protoplasts of wheat (Triticum aestivum) have rates of photosynthesis as measured by light-dependent O₂ evolution of about 100 to 150 micromoles of O₂ per milligram of chlorophyll per hour at 20 C and saturating bicarbonate. The assay conditions sufficient for this activity were 0.4 molar sorbitol, 50 millimolar N-2-hydroxyethylpiperazine-N′-2-ethanesulfonic acid KOH (pH 7.6), and 10 millimolar NaHCO₃ with protoplast, plus a requirement of 1 to 10 millimolar ethylenediaminetetraacetate (EDTA) and 0.2 to 0.5 millimolar inorganic orthophosphate (Pi) with protoplast extracts and chloroplasts. Protoplast extracts evolved approximately 6 micromoles of O₂ per milligram of chlorophyll before photosynthesis became largely dependent on exogenous Pi while photosynthesis by chloroplasts had a much stronger dependence on exogenous Pi from the outset.

Photosynthesis by chloroplasts from 6-day-old wheat plants under optimum levels of Pi was similar to that with the addition of 5 millimolar inorganic pyrophosphate (PPi) plus 0.2 millimolar adenosine-5′-diphosphate (ADP). Either PPi or ADP added separately inhibited photosynthesis. When chloroplasts were incubated in the dark for 2 to 6 minutes, photosynthesis was strongly inhibited by 5 millimolar PPi and this inhibiting was relieved by including adenosine-5′-triphosphate (ATP) or ADP (0.2 to 0.6 millimolar). Chloroplasts from 9-day-old wheat leaves were slightly less sensitive to inhibition by PPi and showed little or no inhibition by ADP.

Chloroplasts isolated from protoplasts and assayed with 0.3 millimolar Pi added before illumination have an induction time from less than 1 minute up to 16 minutes depending on the time of the assay after isolation and the components of the medium. In order to obtain maximum rates of photosynthesis and minimum induction time, NaHCO₃ and chelating agents, EDTA or PPi (+ATP), are required in the chloroplast isolation, resuspension and assay medium. With these inclusions in the isolation and resuspension medium the induction time decreased rapidly during the first 20 to 30 minutes storage of chloroplasts on ice. Requirements for isolating intact and photosynthetically functional chloroplasts from wheat protoplasts are discussed.