QUENCHING OF CHLOROPHYLL-A FLUORESCENCE IN RESPONSE TO NA-DEPENDENT HCO3- TRANSPORT-MEDIATED ACCUMULATION OF INORGANIC CARBON IN THE CYANOBACTERIUM-SYNECHOCOCCUS UTEX-625()
Cm. Crotty et al., QUENCHING OF CHLOROPHYLL-A FLUORESCENCE IN RESPONSE TO NA-DEPENDENT HCO3- TRANSPORT-MEDIATED ACCUMULATION OF INORGANIC CARBON IN THE CYANOBACTERIUM-SYNECHOCOCCUS UTEX-625(), Plant physiology, 104(2), 1994, pp. 785-791
In the cyanobacterium Synechococcus UTEX 625, the yield of chlorophyll
a fluorescence decreased in response to the transport-mediated accumu
lation of intracellular inorganic carbon (CO2 + HCO3- + CO32- = dissol
ved inorganic carbon [DIC]) and subsequently increased to a near-maxim
um level following photosynthetic depletion of the DIC pool. When DIC
accumulation was mediated by the active Na+-dependent HCO3- transport
system, the initial rate of fluorescence quenching was found to be hig
hly correlated with the initial rate of (HCO3-)-C-14 transport (r = 0.
96), and the extent of fluorescence quenching was correlated with the
size of the internal DIC pool (r = 0.99). Na+-dependent HCO3- transpor
t-mediated accumulation of DIC caused fluorescence quenching in either
the presence or absence of the CO2 fixation inhibitor glycolaldehyde,
indicating that quenching was not due simply to NADP(+) reduction. Th
e concentration of Na+ required to attain one-half the maximum rate of
(HCO3-)-C-14 transport, at 20 mu M external HCO3- declined from 9 to
1 mM as the external pH increased from 8 to 9.6. A similar pH dependen
cy was observed when fluorescence quenching was used to determine the
kinetic constants for HCO3- transport. In cells capable of Na+-depende
nt HCO3- transport, both the initial rate and extent of fluorescence q
uenching increased with increasing external HCO3-, saturating at about
150 mu M. In contrast Na+-independent HCO3- transport-mediated fluore
scence quenching saturated at an HCO3- concentration of about 10 mu M.
It was concluded that measurement of chlorophyll a fluorescence emiss
ion provided a convenient, but indirect, means of following Na+-depend
ent HCO3- transport and accumulation in Synechococcus.