Modulation of PSI and PSII Organization During Loss and Repair of Photosynthetic Activity in a Temperature Sensitive Mutant of Chlorella pyrenoidosa.

Photosynthetic activity and organization of chlorophyll(Chl)-protein complexes in a temperature sensitive mutant of Chlorella pyrenoidosa have been investigated. The mutant is practically indistinguishable from wild type cells when grown at 25 C. However, mutant cells grown at 33 C do not synthesize Chl and lose their ability to evolve O(2). O(2) evolution and Chl synthesis are restored upon incubation of the 33 C grown cells at 25 C in absence of cell division (repair).Based on polarographic measurements of photosynthetic activities, variable fluorescence, 77 K fluorescence emission, excitation spectra, analysis of Chl-protein complexes, membrane polypeptide pattern and radioactive labeling using sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis techniques during growth at 33 C and/or under repair conditions, it is concluded that: a, polypeptides of chloroplastic translation required for H(2)O-splitting activity are absent from membranes of 33 C grown cells. Their synthesis and/or assembly during the repair process is light-dependent. b, Polypeptides required for the formation of photosystem II and photosytem I reaction centers continue to be formed during growth at 33 C in absence of Chl synthesis. These can be assembled into functional units following Chl synthesis and energization of the membranes during the repair process. c, The Chl-protein complex serving as an antenna of photosystem I is disorganized, and the Chl is used for the formation of functional reaction centers of photosystem I during growth at 33 C.These results show that Chl-protein complexes can be dissociated in vivo and reassembled in a different way; and formation of Chl-protein complexes can occur stepwise from previously synthesized and newly formed components including both polypeptides and Chl.

A primer independent activity of rabbit muscle phosphorylase b.

Rabbit muscle phosphorylase b was found to be capable of forming protein bound alpha-1,4 glucosyl chains upon incubation of the enzyme with appropriate concentrations of glucose-1-phosphate with no primer addition (unprimed synthesis). This activity would only be present in a small fraction of the total muscle phosphorylase b activity, as judged from the high concentrations of enzyme which are required to demonstrate the occurrence of unprimed synthesis. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis shows the presence of a phosphorylase isoenzyme capable of accepting glucosyl moieties, giving rise to a glucosylated protein enzymatically active in the chain lengthening of its own glucan.

Biosynthesis of starch. Formation of a glucoproteic acceptor by a potato non-sedimentable preparation.

1. A non-sedimentable fraction of potato tuber has been found to catalyze [14C]glucose transfer from [14C]glucose 1-phosphate to an endogenous proteic acceptor in the absence of added primer. This transfer is activated by Mn2+. 2. The labeled glucosylated product formed is trichloroacetic acid insoluble and sensitive to proteolytic and amylolytic digestions. It appears to be a glucoprotein with glucosyl chains bound to the peptide portion of the molecule through an unknown linkage. 3. The carbohydrate portion of the glucoprotein can be released by prolonged incubations with the enzymatic preparation, and becomes in turn, trichloroacetic acid soluble and alcohol precipitable. 4. Both products, the glucoprotein as well as the alpha-1,4-glucan that seems to arise from the enzymatic cleavage of the former, can be used as primers by the transglucosylating system with ADP[14C]glucose, UDP[14C]glucose or GDP[14C]glucose as glucosyl donors. The results presented in this paper are the first demonstration of soluble glucosyl transferases with the same glucose donor specificity to that of the particulate starch synthetase. 5. This report presents further evidence in favor of the assumption of a glucoproteic intermediate in alpha-a,4-glucan synthesis initiation.

Effect of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide on the activity of particulate starch synthetase from potato tuber.

The action of some detergents on the incorporation of glucose from uridine diphosphate glucose or adenosine diphosphate glucose into the potato tuber starch grain was studied. It was found that the cationic detergent, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, produces a rapid binding of both sugar nucleotides to the grain and a great increase in the incorporation of glucose into the polysaccharide. Kinetic constants of starch synthetase are also modified, there being an affinity increase for both sugar nucleotides. Neutral detergents are without effect and anionic detergents are inhibitors.