Characterization of age-related effects in human skin: A comparative study that applies confocal laser scanning microscopy and optical coherence tomography.

Skin structure and age-related changes in human skin were characterized in vivo by applying confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and optical coherence tomography (OCT). The overall effect of aging skin, derived from studies of volunteers belonging to two age groups, was found to be a significant decrease in the maximum thickness of the epidermis and flattening of the dermo-epidermal junction. At a certain depth in the dermis, well below the basal layer, a reflecting layer of fibrous structure is observed in CLSM images. The location of this layer strongly depends on age and is situated much deeper below the skin surface in younger than in older skin. In addition, large structural changes were observed with age. The OCT images show two bright reflecting layers. The first one is due to scattering at the skin surface. The second band appears to be caused by a layer of fibrous structure in the dermis. Direct comparison of CLSM and OCT suggests that the same fibrous layer is imaged by the two techniques. This layer might be due to the transition between the papillary and reticular dermis. A comparison of CLSM and OCT enables a better understanding of the images.

The effect of exchange of bacteriopheophytin a with plant pheophytin a on charge separation in Y(M210)W mutant reaction centers of Rhodobacter sphaeroides at low temperature.

The bacteriopheophytin a molecules at the H(A) and H(B) binding sites of reaction centers (RCs) of the Y(M210)W mutant of Rhodobacter sphaeroides were chemically exchanged with plant pheophytin a. The Y(M210)W mutation slows down the formation of H(A)(-), presumably by raising the free energy level of the P(+)B(A)(-) state above that of P* due to increasing the oxidation potential of the primary electron donor P and lowering the reduction potential of the accessory bacteriochlorophyll B(A). Exchange of the bacteriopheophytins with pheophytin a on the contrary lowers the redox potential of H(A), inhibiting its reduction. A combination of the mutation and pigment exchange was therefore expected to make the A-side of the RC incapable of electron transfer and cause the excited state P* to deactivate directly to the ground state or through the B-side, or both. Time-resolved absorption difference spectroscopy at 10 K on the RCs that were modified in this way showed a lifetime of P* lengthened to about 500 ps as compared to about 200 ps measured in the original Y(M210)W RCs. We show that the decay of P* in the pheophytin-exchanged preparations is accompanied by both return to the ground state and formation of a new charge-separated state, the absorption difference spectrum of which is characterized by bleachings at 811 and 890 nm. This latter state was formed with a time constant of ca. 1.7 ns and a yield of about 30%, and lasted a few nanoseconds. On the basis of spectroscopic observations these bands at 811 and 890 nm are tentatively attributed to the presence of the P(+)B(B)(-) state, where B(B) is the accessory bacteriochlorophyll in the "inactive" B-branch of the cofactors. The B(B) molecules in Y(M210)W RCs are suggested to be spectrally heterogeneous, absorbing in the Q(y) region at 813 or 806 nm. The results are discussed in terms of perturbation of the free energy level of the P(+)B(B)(-) state and absorption properties of the B(B) bacteriochlorophyll in the mutant RCs due to a long-range effect of the Y(M210)W mutation on the protein environment of the B(B) binding pocket.

High yield of B-branch electron transfer in a quadruple reaction center mutant of the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides.

A new reaction center (RC) quadruple mutant, called LDHW, of Rhodobacter sphaeroides is described. This mutant was constructed to obtain a high yield of B-branch electron transfer and to study P(+)Q(B)(-) formation via the B-branch. The A-branch of the mutant RC contains two monomer bacteriochlorophylls, B(A) and beta, as a result of the H mutation L(M214)H. The latter bacteriochlorophyll replaces bacteriopheophytin H(A) of wild-type RCs. As a result of the W mutation A(M260)W, the A-branch does not contain the ubiquinone Q(A); this facilitates the study of P(+)Q(B)(-) formation. Furthermore, the D mutation G(M203)D introduces an aspartic acid residue near B(A). Together these mutations impede electron transfer through the A-branch. The B-branch contains two bacteriopheophytins, Phi(B) and H(B), and a ubiquinone, Q(B.) Phi(B) replaces the monomer bacteriochlorophyll B(B) as a result of the L mutation H(M182)L. In the LDHW mutant we find 35-45% B-branch electron transfer, the highest yield reported so far. Transient absorption spectroscopy at 10 K, where the absorption bands due to the Q(X) transitions of Phi(B) and H(B) are well resolved, shows simultaneous bleachings of both absorption bands. Although photoreduction of the bacteriopheophytins occurs with a high yield, no significant (approximately 1%) P(+)Q(B)(-) formation was found.

B-branch electron transfer in reaction centers of Rhodobacter sphaeroides assessed with site-directed mutagenesis.

Mutants of Rhodobacter (Rba.) sphaeroides are described which were designed to study electron transfer along the so-called B-branch of reaction center (RC) cofactors. Combining the mutation L(M214)H, which results in the incorporation of a bacteriochlorophyll, beta, for H(A) [Kirmaier et al. (1991) Science 251: 922-927] with two mutations, G(M203)D and Y(M210)W, near B(A), we have created a double and a triple mutant with long lifetimes of the excited state P(*) of the primary donor P, viz. 80 and 160 ps at room temperature, respectively. The yield of P(+)Q(A) (-) formation in these mutants is reduced to 50 and 30%, respectively, of that in wildtype RCs. For both mutants, the quantum yield of P(+)H(B) (-) formation was less than 10%, in contrast to the 15% B-branch electron transfer demonstrated in RCs of a similar mutant of Rba. capsulatus with a P(*) lifetime of 15 ps [Heller et al. (1995) Science 269: 940-945]. We conclude that the lifetime of P(*) is not a governing factor in switching to B-branch electron transfer. The direct photoreduction of the secondary quinone, Q(B), was studied with a triple mutant combining the G(M203)D, L(M214)H and A(M260)W mutations. In this triple mutant Q(A) does not bind to the reaction center [Ridge et al. (1999) Photosynth Res 59: 9-26]. It is shown that B-branch electron transfer leading to P(+)Q(B) (-) formation occurs to a minor extent at both room temperature and at cryogenic temperatures (about 3% following a saturating laser flash at 20 K). In contrast, in wildtype RCs P(+)Q(B) (-) formation involves the A-branch and does not occur at all at cryogenic temperatures. Attempts to accumulate the P(+)Q(B) (-) state under continuous illumination were not successful. Charge recombination of P(+)Q(B) (-) formed by B-branch electron transfer in the new mutant is much faster (seconds) than has been previously reported for charge recombination of P(+)Q(B) (-) trapped in wildtype RCs (10(5) s) [Kleinfeld et al. (1984b) Biochemistry 23: 5780-5786]. This difference is discussed in light of the different binding sites for Q(B) and Q(B) (-) that recently have been found by X-ray crystallography at cryogenic temperatures [Stowell et al. (1997) Science 276: 812-816]. We present the first low-temperature absorption difference spectrum due to P(+)Q(B) (-).

Excitation energy trapping in anoxygenic photosynthetic bacteria.

Various aspects of excitation energy conversion in anoxygenic photosynthetic bacteria are surveyed. This minireview discusses different models that have been proposed during the past 60 years to describe excitation energy transfer from an antenna molecule to the reaction center. First, a simple one-dimensional model was suggested, but over time the models became more detailed when structural and dynamic information was included. This review focuses mainly on the picture of purple bacteria and green sulfur bacteria developed during the past decades.