Peridinin-chlorophyll a proteins of the dinoflagellate Amphidinium carterae (Plymouth 450)

Journal Article · Sun Feb 01 04:00:00 EST 1976 · Plant Physiol.; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1104/pp.57.2.297· OSTI ID:7145071

Haxo, F T; Kycia, J H; Somers, G F; Bennett, A; Siegelman, H W

The marine dinoflagellate Amphidinium carterae (Plymouth 450) releases several water-soluble peridinin-chlorophyll a proteins after freeze-thawing. These chromoproteins have a molecular weight of 39.2 x 10/sup 3/ and are comprised of noncovalently bound peridinin and chlorophyll a and a nonoligomeric protein. They have distinct isoelectric points and may be resolved into six components by either isoelectric focusing on polyacrylamide gel or ion exchange chromatography. The predominant chromoprotein, which has a pI of 7.5, constitutes about 90 percent of the extractable peridinin-chlorophyll a protein. It consists of an alanine-rich apoprotein of molecular weight 31.8 x 10/sup 3/ stoichiometrically associated with 9 peridinin and 2 chlorophyll a molecules. Additionally, the peridinin-chlorophyll a proteins with pI values of 7.6 and 6.4 were purified and found to have amino acid and chromophore composition essentially identical with the pI 7.5 protein. Peridinin-chlorophyll a protein, pI 7.5, after treatment at alkaline pH was transformed into several more acid pI forms of the protein, strongly suggesting that the naturally occurring proteins are deamidation products of a single protein. Fluorescence excitation and emission spectra demonstrate that light energy absorbed by peridinin induces chlorophyll a fluorescence presumably by intramolecular energy transfer. The peridinin-chlorophyll a proteins presumably function in vivo as photosynthetic light-harvesting pigments.

• Research Organization: Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY
• OSTI ID: 7145071
• Journal Information: Plant Physiol.; (United States), Journal Name: Plant Physiol.; (United States) Vol. 57:2; ISSN PLPHA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

550200* -- Biochemistry
550700 -- Microbiology
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
ALGAE
BIOCHEMISTRY
BIOMASS
CARBOXYLIC ACIDS
CHEMISTRY
CHLOROPHYLL
ENERGY SOURCES
HETEROCYCLIC ACIDS
HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS
MICROORGANISMS
ORGANIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
PHYTOCHROMES
PIGMENTS
PLANTS
PORPHYRINS
PROTEINS
RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES
UNICELLULAR ALGAE