Pulsed EPR spectroscopy on short-lived intermediates in Photosystem I.

The application of pulsed electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy on short-lived intermediates in Photosystem I is reviewed. The spin polarization in light-induced radical pairs gives rise to a phase shifted 'out-of-phase' electron spin echo signal. This echo signal shows a prominent modulation of its intensity as a function of the spacing between the two microwave pulses. Its modulation frequency is determined by the electron-electron spin couplings within the radical pair. Thereby, the measurement of the dipolar coupling gives direct information about the spin-spin distance and can therefore be used to determine cofactor distances with high precision. Application of this technique to the radical pair P(*+)(700)A(*-)(1) in Photosystem I is discussed. Moreover, if oriented samples (e.g. single crystals) are used, the angular dependence of the dipolar coupling can be used to derive the orientation of the axis connecting donor and acceptor with respect to an external (crystal) axes system. Using out-of-phase electron spin echo envelope modulation spectroscopy, the localization of the secondary acceptor quinone A(1) has become possible.

Determination of the distance between Y(Z)ox* and QA-* in photosystem II by pulsed EPR spectroscopy on light-induced radical pairs.

Out-of-phase electron spin echo envelope modulation (ESEEM) spectroscopy was used to determine the distances within two consecutive radical pair states initiated by a laser flash in photosystem II membrane fragments at pH 11. The distance between the spin density centers of the primary electron donor cation radical, P680+*, and the reduced plastoquinone acceptor, QA-*, has been found to be 27.7+/-0.7 A in agreement with previous results. Near room temperature and at high pH, P680+* is reduced by Y(Z), a redox active tyrosine residue, on a sub-microsecond timescale. As a consequence, the subsequent radical pair state, Y(Z)ox*-QA-*, could be investigated after almost complete reduction of P680+* by Y(Z). The determined dipolar electronic spin-spin coupling within the radical pair Y(Z)ox*QA-* corresponds to a distance of 34+/-1 A between the two molecules.

Pulsed EPR measurement of the distance between P680+. and Q(A)-. in photosystem II.

Out-of-phase electron spin echo envelope modulation (ESEEM) spectroscopy was used to determine the distance between the primary donor radical cation P680+. and the quinone acceptor radical anion Q(A)-. in iron-depleted photosystem II in membrane fragments from spinach that are deprived of the water oxidizing complex. Furthermore, a lower limit for the distance between the oxidized tyrosine residue Y(Z) of polypeptide D1 and Q(A)-. could be estimated by a comparison of data gathered from samples where the electron transfer from Y(Z) to P680+. is either intact or blocked by preillumination in the presence of NH2OH.

Measurement of cofactor distances between P700.+ and A1.- in native and quinone-substituted photosystem I using pulsed electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy.

The radical pair P700.+Q.- (P700 = primary electron donor, Q = quinone acceptor) in native photosystem I and in preparations in which the native acceptor (vitamin K1) is replaced by different quinones is investigated by pulsed EPR spectroscopy. In a two-pulse experiment, the light-induced radical pair causes an out-of-phase electron spin echo, showing an envelope modulation. From the modulation frequency, the dipolar coupling, and therefore the distance between the two cofactors, can be derived. The observation of nearly identical distances of about 25.4 A between P700.+ and Q.- in all preparations investigated here leads to the conclusion that the reconstituted quinones are bound to the native A1 binding pocket. Since the orientation of the reconstituted naphthoquinone relative to the axis joining P700.+ and Q*- differs drastically from that of the native vitamin K1, it cannot be bonded to the protein in the same way as the native acceptor. This implies that the function of A1 as an electron acceptor does not depend on the orientation or hydrogen bonding of the quinone.

Pulsed EPR structure analysis of photosystem I single crystals: localization of the phylloquinone acceptor.

A novel application of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) is reported to gain three dimensional structural information on cofactors in proteins. The method is applied here to determine the unknown position of the electron acceptor QK, a phylloquinone (vitamin K1), in the electron transfer chain in photosystem I of oxygenic photosynthesis. The unusual electron spin echo (out-of-phase echo) observed for the light induced radical pair P700.+QK.- in PS I allows the measurement of the dipolar coupling between the two radical pair spins which yields directly the distance between these two radicals. Full advantage of the information in the out-of-phase echo modulation can be taken if measurements using single crystals are performed. With such samples, the orientation of the principal axis of the dipolar interaction, i.e., the axis connecting P700.+QK.-, can be determined with respect to the crystal axes system. An angle of theta = (27 +/- 5)degrees between the dipolar coupling axis and the crystallographic c-axis has been derived from the modulation of the out-of-phase echo. Furthermore, the projection of the dipolar axis into the crystallographic a,b-plane, is found to be parallel to the a-axis. The results allow for the determination of two possible locations of QK within the electron transfer chain of photosystem I. These two positions are related to each other by the pseudo C2 symmetry of the chlorophyll cofactors.

Electron paramagnetic resonance studies of zinc-substituted reaction centers from Rhodopseudomonas viridis.

The primary quinone acceptor radical anion Q(A)(-)(*) (a menaquinone-9) is studied in reaction centers (RCs) of Rhodopseudomonas viridis in which the high-spin non-heme Fe(2+) is replaced by diamagnetic Zn(2+). The procedure for the iron substitution, which follows the work of Debus et al. [Debus, R. J., Feher, G., and Okamura, M. Y. (1986) Biochemistry 25, 2276-2287], is described. In Rps. viridisan exchange rate of the iron of approximately 50% +/- 10% is achieved. Time-resolved optical spectroscopy shows that the ZnRCs are fully competent in charge separation and that the charge recombination times are similar to those of native RCs. The g tensor of Q(A)(-)(*) in the ZnRCs is determined by a simulation of the EPR at 34 GHz yielding g(x) = 2.00597 (5), g(y) = 2.00492 (5), and g(z) = 2.00216 (5). Comparison with a menaquinone anion radical (MQ(4)(-)(*)) dissolved in 2-propanol identifies Q(A)(-)(*) as a naphthoquinone and shows that only one tensor component (g(x)) is predominantly changed in the RC. This is attributed to interaction with the protein environment. Electron-nuclear double resonance (ENDOR) experiments at 9 GHz reveal a shift of the spin density distribution of Q(A)(-)(*) in the RC as compared with MQ(4)(-)(*) in alcoholic solution. This is ascribed to an asymmetry of the Q(A) binding site. Furthermore, a hyperfine coupling constant from an exchangeable proton is deduced and assigned to a proton in a hydrogen bond between the quinone oxygen and surrounding amino acid residues. By electron spin-echo envelope modulation (ESEEM) techniques performed on Q(A)(-)(*) in the ZnRCs, two (14)N nuclear quadrupole tensors are determined that arise from the surrounding amino acids. One nitrogen coupling is assigned to a N(delta)((1))-H of a histidine and the other to a polypeptide backbone N-H by comparison with the nuclear quadrupole couplings of respective model systems. Inspection of the X-ray structure of Rps. viridis RCs shows that His(M217) and Ala(M258) are likely candidates for the respective amino acids. The quinone should therefore be bound by two H bonds to the protein that could, however, be of different strength. An asymmetric H-bond situation has also been found for Q(A)(-)(*) in the RC of Rhodobacter sphaeroides. Time-resolved electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) experiments are performed on the radical pair state P(960)(+) (*)Q(A)(-)(*) in ZnRCs of Rps. viridis that were treated with o-phenanthroline to block electron transfer to Q(B). The orientations of the two radicals in the radical pair obtained from transient EPR and their distance deduced from pulsed EPR (out-of-phase ESEEM) are very similar to the geometry observed for the ground state P(960)Q(A) in the X-ray structure [Lancaster, R., Michel, H. (1997) Structure 5, 1339].

Recruitment of a foreign quinone into the A(1) site of photosystem I. II. Structural and functional characterization of phylloquinone biosynthetic pathway mutants by electron paramagnetic resonance and electron-nuclear double resonance spectroscopy.

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and electron-nuclear double resonance studies of the photosystem (PS) I quinone acceptor, A(1), in phylloquinone biosynthetic pathway mutants are described. Room temperature continuous wave EPR measurements at X-band of whole cells of menA and menB interruption mutants show a transient reduction and oxidation of an organic radical with a g-value and anisotropy characteristic of a quinone. In PS I complexes, the continuous wave EPR spectrum of the photoaccumulated Q(-) radical, measured at Q-band, and the electron spin-polarized transient EPR spectra of the radical pair P700(+) Q(-), measured at X-, Q-, and W-bands, show three prominent features: (i) Q(-) has a larger g-anisotropy than native phylloquinone, (ii) Q(-) does not display the prominent methyl hyperfine couplings attributed to the 2-methyl group of phylloquinone, and (iii) the orientation of Q(-) in the A(1) site as derived from the spin polarization is that of native phylloquinone in the wild type. Electron spin echo modulation experiments on P700(+) Q(-) show that the dipolar coupling in the radical pair is the same as in native PS I, i.e. the distance between P700(+) and Q(-) (25.3 +/- 0.3 A) is the same as between P700(+) and A(1)(-) in the wild type. Pulsed electron-nuclear double resonance studies show two sets of resolved spectral features with nearly axially symmetric hyperfine couplings. They are tentatively assigned to the two methyl groups of the recruited plastoquinone-9, and their difference indicates a strong inequivalence among the two groups when in the A(1) site. These results show that Q (i) functions in accepting an electron from A(0)(-) and in passing the electron forward to the iron-sulfur clusters, (ii) occupies the A(1) site with an orientation similar to that of phylloquinone in the wild type, and (iii) has spectroscopic properties consistent with its identity as plastoquinone-9.