Molecular Sizes of the Catalytic Units of Oxygen Evolution and the Reaction Center in Photosystem II of Spinach Thylakoids

Target analysis of the PS II reaction in spinach thylakoidsshowed that the respective molecular masses of the catalyticunits for oxygen evolution and the reaction center are about120 kDa and 250 kDa based on a kinetic separation of the tworeaction rates. The size of the oxygen-evolving enzyme agreedwith that determined for the PS II preparation from a thermophiliccyanobacterium by the same means Nugent and Atkinson (1984)FEBS Lett. 170: 89]. Single hit-inactivation of oxygen evolutionand the PS II reaction center units indicates that each functionis driven by a structurally assembled unit. (Received August 6, 1984; Accepted December 17, 1984)