Chlorophyll a fluorescence transient as an indicator of active and inactive photosystem II in thylakoid membranes

Abstract

Upon illumination, a dark-adapted photosynthetic sample shows time-dependent changes in chlorophyll (Chl) a fluorescence yield, known as the Kautsky phenomenon or the OIDPS transient. Based on the differential effects of electron acceptors such as 2,5-dimethyl- p-benzoquinone (DMQ) and 2,6-dichloro- p-benzoquinone (DCBQ) on Chl a fluorescence transients of spinach thylakoids, we suggest that the OID phase reflects the reduction of the electron acceptor Q A to Q − A in the inactive PS II (see Graan, T. and Ort, D. (1986) Diochim. Biophys. Acta 852, 320–330 [14]). In spinach thylakoids, heat-induced increase of the Chl a fluorescence yield is also differentially sensitive to the addition of DMQ and DCBQ suggesting that this increase is mainly on the ‘I’ level, and thus heating is suggested to convert active PS II to inactive PS II centers. The kinetics of decay of Q − A, calculated from variable Chl a fluorescence, was analyzed into three exponential components (365–395 μs; 6–7 ms; and 1.4–1.7 s). In heated samples, the decay rate of variable Chl a fluorescence is slower than the normal back-reaction rate; there is a preponderance of the slow component that may be due, partly, to the inactive centers undergoing slow back reaction between Q − A and the S 2 state of the oxygen-evolving complex.