The light-harvesting apparatus of the purple bacterial photosynthetic unit consists of a pool of peripheral light-harvesting complexes that transfer excitation energy to a reaction center (RC) via the surrounding pigment-protein complex LH1. Recent electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy studies have revealed that RC-LH1 units of Rhodobacter sphaeroides form membrane-bending dimeric complexes together with the polypeptide PufX. We present a structural model for these RC-LH1-PufX dimeric complexes constructed using the molecular dynamics flexible fitting method based on an EM density map. The arrangement of the LH1 BChls displays a distortion near the proposed location of the PufX polypeptide. The resulting atomic model for BChl arrays is used to compute the excitonic properties of the dimeric RC-LH1 complex. A comparison is presented between the structural and excitonic features of the S-shaped dimeric BChl array of Rhodobacter sphaeroides and the circular BChl arrangement found in other purple bacteria.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2678753 | PMC |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chemphys.2009.01.003 | DOI Listing |
Appl Spectrosc
January 2025
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA.
Time-resolved, rapid-scan Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) difference spectra have been recorded upon illumination on photosynthetic reaction centers (RCs) from under fixed hydration conditions (relative humidity = 76%). Two different illumination schemes were adopted. Whereas the use of a laser flash (duration: 7 ns) made it possible to follow the kinetics of recombination of the light-induced state PQ to the neutral state PQ, the use of a 20.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Mol Sci
December 2024
Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Via Irnerio n.42, 40126 Bologna, Italy.
Disaccharide trehalose has been proven in many cases to be particularly effective in preserving the functional and structural integrity of biological macromolecules. In this work, we studied its effect on the electron transfer reactions that occur in the chromatophores of the photosynthetic bacterium . In the presence of a high concentration of trehalose, following the activation of the photochemistry by flashes of light, a slowdown of the electrogenic reactions related to the activity of the photosynthetic reaction center and cytochtome (cyt) complexes is observable.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Am Chem Soc
January 2025
Department of Chemistry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794, United States.
The Blue Light Using FAD (BLUF) photoreceptor utilizes a noncovalently bound FAD to absorb light and trigger the initial ultrafast events in receptor activation. FAD undergoes 1 and 2 electron reduction as an enzyme redox cofactor, and studies on the BLUF photoreceptor PixD revealed the formation of flavin radicals (FAD and FADH) during the photocycle, supporting a general mechanism for BLUF operation that involves PCET from a conserved Tyr to the oxidized FAD. However, no radical intermediates are observed in the closely related BLUF proteins AppA and BlsA, and replacing the conserved Tyr with fluoro-Tyr analogs that increase the acidity of the phenol OH has a minor effect on AppA photoactivation in contrast to PixD where the photocycle is halted at FAD.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFood Chem X
December 2024
Meat Processing Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, College of Food and Biological Engineering, Chengdu Univeristy, Chengdu 610106, China.
Limited research has explored the use of cell-free extracts (RCFE) in meat processing. To examine the potential application of RCFE in improving the flavor quality of Chinese-style sausage, in this study, we investigated the effects and mechanisms of RCFE grown under low-oxygen conditions on the flavor development of Chinese-style sausage, using GC-MS and 4D label-free proteomics. The GC-MS analysis detected 60 volatile organic compounds, with significant increases in acids, esters, and alcohols following the addition of RCFE ( < 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Agric Food Chem
December 2024
State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering and School of Biotechnology, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China.
HY01 is a high-yield strain for industrial production of coenzyme Q (Q), indicating its potential for producing other terpenoids. However, the production of Q substantially depletes isoprene precursors, nearly eliminating other terpenoids like spheroidene and spheroidenone commonly found in wild-type . Lycopene was used as an example to demonstrate its potential for terpenoid biosynthesis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!