Limited Electron Transfer Research Articles

Release of oxidized plastocyanin from photosystem I limits electron transfer between photosystem I and cytochromeb6fcomplexin vivo

We used fast absorbance spectroscopy to investigate in vivo binding dynamics and electron transfer between plastocyanin (pc) and photosystem I (PSI), and cytochrome (cyt) f oxidation kinetics in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii mutants in which either the binding or the release of pc from PSI was diminished. Under single flash-excitation conditions, electron flow between PSI and the cyt complex was not affected by a 5-fold lowering of the binding affinity of pc to PSI, as induced by a mutation replacing the tryptophan-651 of the PsaA subunit by a serine residue (PsaA-W651S). On the other hand, electron flow from PSI to the cyt b(6)f complex was very sensitive to a 2- to 3-fold decrease in the rate of pc release from PSI, obtained by replacing the glutamic acid residue 613 of the PsaB subunit with glutamine (PsaB-E613N). Thus, our data indicate that under these experimental conditions the release of oxidized pc limits electron transfer between cyt b(6)f complex and PSI in vivo.

Mechanism of Molecular Control of Recombination Dynamics in Dye-Sensitized Nanocrystalline Semiconductor Films

Recent experiments have shown that it is possible to switch between electron transport limited and interfacial electron transfer (IET) limited recombination dynamics of photoinjected electrons and the oxidized dye molecules anchored to the TiO2 under the same spectroscopic conditions, by appropriate design of the dye. The kinetics not only is slower in the IET limited case but also single exponential, in contrast to the highly dispersive transport limited recombination kinetics. We suggest that exponential kinetics could be a result of the Coulomb trap effect. Once an electron reaches the cation, electrostatic interaction keeps it near the cation until recombination takes place. Otherwise, dispersive transport would not allow for the exponential kinetics to develop. An analytical expression for the cation survival probability is derived that shows very good agreement with available experimental data. Physically, the Coulomb trap effect is justifiable if the relative dielectric constant of the surrounding ...

The Modified Q-cycle Explains the Apparent Mismatch between the Kinetics of Reduction of Cytochromes c1 and bH in the bc1 Complex

Crystallographic structures of the bc1 complex from different sources have provided evidence that a movement of the Rieske iron-sulfur protein (ISP) extrinsic domain is essential for catalysis. This dynamic feature has opened up the question of what limits electron transfer, and several authors have suggested that movement of the ISP head, or gating of such movement, is rate-limiting. Measurements of the kinetics of cytochromes and of the electrochromic shift of carotenoids, following flash activation through the reaction center in chromatophore membranes from Rhodobacter sphaeroides, have allowed us to demonstrate that: (i) ubiquinol oxidation at the Qo-site of the bc1 complex has the same rate in the absence or presence of antimycin bound at the Qi-site, and is the reaction limiting turnover. (ii) Activation energies for transient processes to which movement of the ISP must contribute are much lower than that of the rate-limiting step. (iii) Comparison of experimental data with a simple mathematical model demonstrates that the kinetics of reduction of cytochromes c1 and bH are fully explained by the modified Q-cycle. (iv) All rates for processes associated with movement of the ISP are more rapid by at least an order of magnitude than the rate of ubiquinol oxidation. (v) Movement of the ISP head does not introduce a significant delay in reduction of the high potential chain by quinol, and it is not necessary to invoke such a delay to explain the kinetic disparity between the kinetics of reduction of cytochromes c1 and bH.

Oxidation of ferrocene derivatives at a poly[Ni(saltMe)] modified electrode

The characterisation of film permeability and mediation properties of poly[Ni(saltMe)] modified electrodes were evaluated by studying the oxidation of ferrocene and 1,1′-dimethylferrocene at these electrodes by rotating-disk voltammetry. The effects of varying the substrate and its solution concentration, film thickness, rotation speed and electrode potential on the limiting current density were analysed using the model of Albery. Both substrate oxidations show two mechanisms, according to the applied potential. The first, direct reaction on the underlying electrode is controlled by substrate transport through the film (Et S case). The second, polymer-mediated reaction occurred at higher potentials, and was the only substrate oxidation process observed for thick films. Mechanistic analysis for polymer-mediated oxidation revealed some dependence of the reaction zone on the substrate and its concentration. For the highest ferrocene concentrations, oxidation occurs in a thin reaction layer away from both interfaces (LRZt et S case). However, for the highest concentrations of 1,1′-dimethylferrocene, the mediated reaction is controlled by substrate transport through the film and occurs close to the underlying electrode interface (LEt S case). As both substrate concentrations decrease, the heterogenous rate constants for the modified electrode, k′ ME, become essentially independent of film thickness and are consistent with rate limiting electron transfer at or near the film ∣ solution interface (S k′ or LS k cases).

Lys35 of PsaC is required for the efficient photoreduction of flavodoxin by photosystem I from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.

The photoreduction of the oxidized and the semiquinone form of flavodoxin from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 by the photosystem I (PSI) of wild-type Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and the mutant strains Lys35Asp, Lys35Glu and Lys35Arg was analysed by flash-absorption spectroscopy to investigate the role of residue Lys35 of the PSI subunit PsaC in flavodoxin reduction. For PSI preparations from C. reinhardtii the reduction of oxidized flavodoxin was monoexponential and approached limiting electron transfer rates similar to those of cyanobacterial PSI from the wild-type and the Lys35Arg mutant. For PSI from the Lys35Glu mutant, however, a approximately 2.5-fold smaller value was determined. The photoreduction of flavodoxin semiquinone by PSI from C. reinhardtii lacked fast first-order kinetic components and, in contrast with PSI from cyanobacteria, displayed only a single concentration-dependent phase. From this phase, second-order rate constants were calculated for wild-type PSI and PSI from the Lys35Arg mutant which were comparable to those of PSI from cyanobacteria. For PSI from the Lys35Glu and the Lys35Asp mutants the derived second-order rate constants were 19 and 10 times smaller. Thus, the inversion of charge at position 35 of PsaC negatively affects the rate of electron transfer to both forms of flavodoxin, whereas PSI complexes that retain a positive charge at this position show wild-type kinetics. However, the positive charge at this position of PsaC is not essential for flavodoxin photoreduction as the number of flavodoxin molecules reduced per PSI was similar for all of the PSI complexes investigated. In addition, chemical cross-linking assays showed that the binary cross-linking product between flavodoxin and PsaC of PSI from wild-type C. reinhardtii was not formed with PSI complexes from the Lys13Asp and Lys35Glu mutants. This indicates that Lys35 of PsaC is probably essential for the chemical cross-link between PsaC and flavodoxin. Taken together, these experiments show that Lys35 of PsaC plays a strikingly similar role in the electron transfer from PSI to both ferredoxin and flavodoxin.

The PsaE subunit is required for complex formation between photosystem I and flavodoxin from the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803.

The photoreduction of the oxidized and the semiquinone form of flavodoxin by photosystem I particles (PSI) from the wild type and a psaE deletion strain from the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 was analyzed by flash-absorption spectroscopy to investigate a possible involvement of the PsaE subunit in this photoreduction process. The kinetics of the reduction of oxidized flavodoxin display a single-exponential component for both PSI preparations. Limiting electron transfer rates kobs of approximately 500 and approximately 900 s -1 are deduced for the wild type and PSI from the psaE-less mutant, respectively, indicating that the PsaE subunit is not important for this photoreduction process. In the case of wild-type PSI, the reduction of flavodoxin semiquinone is a biphasic process, displaying a fast first-order phase with a t1/2 of approximately 13 micro(s) which is then followed by a slower, concentration-dependent phase, for which a second-order rate constant k2 of 2.2 x 10(8) M-1 cm-1 is calculated. In contrast, photoreduction of the semiquinone by PSI from the psaE-less mutant is monoexponential, displaying only one second-order component with a second-order rate constant similar to those observed for wild-type PSI (k2 = 1.5 x 10(8) M-1 cm-1). The fast first-order component which is interpreted as an electron transfer process within a preformed complex between flavodoxin semiquinone and PSI is almost completely absent in the reduction of flavodoxin by the PsaE-less PSI. A similar loss of the fast phase is also observed for the photoreduction of flavodoxin semiquinone by PSI from a Synechococcus elongatus psaE-less mutant. Upon reconstitution of isolated PsaE to the PsaE-less PSI in vitro, approximately 80% of the fast first-order kinetic component is recovered, indicating that PsaE is required for high-affinity binding of the flavodoxin semiquinone to PSI. In addition, chemical cross-linking assays show that flavodoxin can no longer be cross-linked to PSI in detectable amounts when PsaE is missing on the reaction center. Taken together, these experiments indicate that the PsaE subunit is required for complex formation between PSI and flavodoxin but is not required for an efficient forward electron transfer from photosystem I to both forms of flavodoxin.

Radical Ion Probes. 8. Direct and Indirect Electrochemistry of 5,7-Di-tert-butylspiro[2.5]octa-4,7-dien-6-one and Derivatives

Results pertaining to the direct and indirect electrochemistry of 5,7-di-tert-butylspiro[2.5]octa-4,7-dien-6-one (1a), 1-methyl-5,7-di-tert-butylspiro[2.5]octa-4,7-dien-6-one (1b), and 1,1,-dimethyl-5,7-di-tert-butylspiro[2.5]octa-4,7-dien-6-one (1c) are reported. Product analyses reveal that reduction of all these substrates leads to cyclopropane ring-opened products; ring opening occurs with modest selectivity leading to the more substituted (stable) distonic radical anion. The direct electrochemistry of these compounds is characterized by rate limiting electron transfer (with α ≈ 0.5), suggesting that while ring opening is extremely rapid, the radical anions do have a discrete lifetime (i.e., electron transfer and ring opening are not concerted). Utilizing homogeneous redox catalysis, rate constants for electron transfer between 1a, 1b, and 1c and a series of aromatic radical anions were measured; reduction potentials and reorganization energies were derived from these rate constants by using Marcus th...

Spectroscopic and Kinetic Characterization of the Recombinant Cytochrome c Reductase Fragment of Nitrate Reductase: IDENTIFICATION OF THE RATE-LIMITING CATALYTIC STEP

The recombinant NADH-cytochrome c reductase fragment of spinach NADH-nitrate reductase (EC 1.6.6.1), consisting of the contiguous heme-containing cytochrome b domain and flavin-containing NADH-cytochrome b reductase fragment, has been characterized spectroscopically and kinetically. Reductive titration with sodium dithionite indicates heme reduction takes place prior to flavin reduction, which correlates well with the reduction potentials for enzyme-bound heme (15 mV) and FAD (-280 mV). Reductive titration with NADH also indicates that the reduced enzyme forms a charge-transfer complex with NAD+. The circular dichroism spectrum of the oxidized fragment is primarily due to the flavin, whereas the ferrous heme dominates the circular dichroism spectrum of reduced enzyme. Three kinetic phases are observed in the course of the reaction of the enzyme with NADH, each with a distinct spectral signature. The fast phase represents flavin reduction, concomitant with the formation of a charge-transfer complex between reduced flavin and NAD+, and exhibits hyperbolic dependence on NADH concentration with a Kd of 3 microM and a limiting rate constant of 560 s-1. Electron transfer from reduced flavin to heme with a rate constant of 12 s-1 is the intermediate phase, which is rate-limited by breakdown of the charge-transfer complex between NAD+ and reduced flavin. The slow phase is dismutation of a pair of molecules of two-electron reduced enzyme (generated at the end of the second phase of the reaction) to give one molecule each of one- and three- electron reduced enzyme, with a second order rate constant of 2 x 10(6) M-1 s-1. In the presence of excess NADH, this dismutation reaction is followed by the rapid reaction of the one-electron reduced enzyme with a second equivalent of NADH to generate fully reduced enzyme. On the basis of this work, it appears that dissociation of NAD+ from the reduced flavin site rate limits electron transfer to the cytochrome and likely represents the overall rate-limiting step of catalysis.

Polyelectrochromic Prussian blue: a chronoamperometric study of the electrodeposition

Abstract Prussian blue (PB, iron(III)hexacyanoferrate(II) films that exhibit redox state dependent polyelectrochromicity have been the subject of intensive recent study. Chronoamperometric results over a scale of several seconds supported by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), are now presented for the electrodeposition of PB onto indium-tin oxide (ITO) and platinum by electroreduction from iron(III)hexacyanoferrate(III)-containing solutions. Variation of electrode potential, supporting electrolyte and electroactive species concentration have established a three-stage electrodeposition mechanism. The main features of the mechanism which are inferred largely from the chronoamperometry are as follows. In the first growth phase the surface becomes uniformly covered as small PB nuclei form and grow on platinum sites. This results in a decrease in the number of sites at which direct electroreduction can occur and a decrease in the film formation rate. In the second growth phase there is an increase in rate towards maximal roughness as the electroactive area increases by formation and three-dimensional growth of PB nuclei attached to the PB interface formed in the initial stage. These processes are evident in the SEM. In the final growth phase, diffusion of locally depleted electroactive species to the now three-dimensional PB interface plays an increasingly dominant role and limits electron transfer resulting in a fall in rate.

The domination of Hund's rule by the kinetic energy differences for molecular systems at all internuclear separations

We provide the first examples showing that the kinetic energy difference dominates Hund's rule for molecular systems at all internuclear separations. To evaluate singlet-triplet energy component differences, self-consistent field (SCF) calculations were carried out for the low lying singlet and triplet states, 1,3∑ +, of two-electron cations of first-row hydrides AH n+ (A = Li-F). It was found that the dominant contribution to Δ E comes from the kinetic energy difference Δ T. Our results are the first examples of this kind. To find the reasons for this phenomenon, we employed two approaches. According to the molecular virial theorem, the necessary condition is that ∂Δ E/∂ R is always less than zero, and a large magnitude of ∂Δ E/∂ R at short distances, R, is a possible condition. In terms of Mulliken population indices, however, the dominant contribution of Δ T results from the limited electron transfer from the is to the 2s atomic orbital of the non- hydrogen atom. The basis set effect is also discussed.

Photochemical initiation of electron transfer reactions.

It is quite apparent that the use of photoinitiated electron transfer has become a powerful, if not dominating, technique in the study of biological electron transfer. It provides a means to measure directly very fast processes and, through the choice of approach (flavin semiquinones or related, metal substitution in hemes or modification with ruthenium) and experimental conditions, provides the ability to probe different features of the electron transfer mechanism. Nevertheless, much remains to be done to fully understand biological electron transfer. The use of photoinitiated electron transfer has clearly established a role for a number of factors involved in controlling the kinetics of electron transfer, including driving force, distance, intervening media, dynamics (conformational gating) and orientation of redox centers. However, we have only scratched the surface in regard to understanding in molecular terms the details of electron transfer in physiologically relevant systems. Thus, even relatively simple and well characterized systems like cytochrome c-cytochrome c peroxidase remain obscure in terms of the through-protein electron paths (intervening media) and the role of protein dynamics in controlling electron transfer kinetics. Indeed, it is the through-protein paths and conformational gating that are unique to biological systems and provide nature with the capability of modulating electron transfer kinetics to optimize biological function. Of the techniques described here, the use of flavin semiquinones is clearly the least invasive in that there is no evidence that flavin semiquinones bind to or perturb physiologically relevant systems. However, this approach is constrained in that precise distances and orientations are not always known, and the range of driving forces available is limited. In contrast, metal substitution and ruthenation allow the positions of interacting redox centers to be reasonably well defined and can provide a very large range of driving force. This latter point is particularly important since it provides a means to discriminate between rate limiting electron transfer and conformational gating. Nevertheless, chemically modifying redox proteins runs the risk of structural and electrostatic alterations which can be difficult to detect but have profound effects on the redox kinetics. Moreover, the intrinsic protein dynamics can be affected, resulting, in the worst case, in changes in conformational gating which cannot be resolved from rate limiting electron transfer. Given the early stage of development of photo-initiated electron transfer, substantial progress can be expected in the next few years. No doubt new approaches will be developed and existing approaches further refined. Especially important, the theoretical basis for interpreting and understanding electron transfer will continue to evolve.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Electrochemical approach to the development of a photoelectrode on the basis of photosynthetic reaction centers

Experimental approaches to the coupling of photoinduced charge separation in reaction centers (RCs) of the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides R-26 with electron transfer to an electrode are discussed. Exogenous quinones are used as an electron transfer mediator. With the use of photopolarography it is shown that water-soluble ubiquinone can serve as a diffusionally mobile mediator of electron transfer. Some methods of quinone immobilization at an electrode have been developed to obtain a non-diffusional mediator of electron transfer. Quasi-reversible electrochemical kinetics were observed for aminonaphthoquinone immobilized as a monolayer at a Pt electrode. The ubiquinone-depleted RCs were subjected to affinity immobilization at these chemically modified electrodes probably due to the insertion of the immobilized quinone into the primary quinone Q A binding site. The quantum efficiency of photocurrent formation was ca. 5% for the photoelectrode obtained. The electrochemical process of the immobilized quinone is shown to be the stage that limits electron transfer from RCs to the electrode.

Electrochemical approach to the development of a photoelectrode on the basis of photosynthetic reaction centers

Experimental approaches to the coupling of photoinduced charge separation in reaction centers (RCs) of the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides R-26 with electron transfer to an electrode are discussed. Exogenous quinones are used as an electron transfer mediator. With the use of photopolarography it is shown that water-soluble ubiquinone can serve as a diffusionally mobile mediator of electron transfer. Some methods of quinone immobilization at an electrode have been developed to obtain a non-diffusional mediator of electron transfer. Quasi-reversible electrochemical kinetics were observed for aminonaphthoquinone immobilized as a monolayer at a Pt electrode. The ubiquinone-depleted RCs were subjected to affinity immobilization at these chemically modified electrodes probably due to the insertion of the immobilized quinone into the primary quinone Q A binding site. The quantum efficiency of photocurrent formation was ca. 5% for the photoelectrode obtained. The electrochemical process of the immobilized quinone is shown to be the stage that limits electron transfer from RCs to the electrode.

Oxidation at low temperatures

Abstract The growth of oxide films on metals and semiconductors at low temperatures was not adequately explained until Mott proposed electron tunnelling as the mechanism of charge neutralization. This led to the Cabrera-Mott model of oxidation in which a self-induced field reduces the activation energy for ion movement. The resulting equation was shown by Fehlner to fit the oxidation kinetics when network-forming oxides can grow. The present work examines kinetic data for network modifiers and attempts to fit them to a direct logarithmic expression of Uhlig. Trapped charge is assumed to limit electron transfer. Charge densities in the 1018−1020cm−3 range are found for Cu, Na, Be, Zn, and Fe.