Light-Induced Structural Changes in a Photosynthetic Reaction Center Caught by Laue Diffraction
Journal article, 2010
Photosynthetic reaction centers convert the energy content of light into a transmembrane potential
difference and so provide the major pathway for energy input into the biosphere. We applied
time-resolved Laue diffraction to study light-induced conformational changes in the photosynthetic
reaction center complex of
Blastochloris viridis. The side chain of TyrL162, which lies adjacent to the
special pair of bacteriochlorophyll molecules that are photooxidized in the primary light conversion event
of photosynthesis, was observed to move 1.3 angstroms closer to the special pair after photoactivation.
Free energy calculations suggest that this movement results from the deprotonation of this conserved
tyrosine residue and provides a mechanism for stabilizing the primary charge separation reactions of
photosynthesis.
TIME-RESOLVED CRYSTALLOGRAPHY
SPECIAL PAIR
RHODOPSEUDOMONAS-VIRIDIS
VIRIDIS REACTION CENTERS
PROTEIN
ELECTRON-TRANSFER
CYTOCHROME
SPECTROSCOPY
RHODOBACTER-SPHAEROIDES
TEMPERATURE
Author
Annemarie Wöhri
Chalmers, Chemical and Biological Engineering, Molecular Imaging
Gergely Katona
University of Gothenburg
Linda C Johansson
University of Gothenburg
Emelie Fritz
University of Gothenburg
Erik Malmerberg
University of Gothenburg
Magnus Andersson
Chalmers, Chemical and Biological Engineering, Molecular Imaging
J Vincent
Uppsala University
Mattias Eklund
Uppsala University
Marco Cammarata
European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF)
Michael Wulff
European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF)
Stanford University
J Davidsson
Uppsala University
G. Groenhof
Max Planck Society
Richard Neutze
University of Gothenburg
Science
0036-8075 (ISSN) 1095-9203 (eISSN)
Vol. 328 5978 630-633Subject Categories
Chemical Sciences
DOI
10.1126/science.1186159