SPECTROSCOPIC EVIDENCE FOR THE PRESENCE OF AN IRON-SULFUR CENTER SIMILAR TO F-X OF PHOTOSYSTEM-I IN HELIOBACILLUS-MOBILIS

Treatment of membranes of Heliobacillus mobilis with high concentrations of the chaotropic agent urea resulted in the removal of the iron-sulfur centers FA and Fg from the reaction center, as indicated by EPR spectra under strongly reducing conditions. In urea-treated membranes, transient absorption measurements upon a laser flash indicated a recombination between the photo-oxidized primary donor P798(+) and a reduced acceptor with a time constant of 20 ms at room temperature. Benzylviologen, vitamin K-3 and methylene blue were found to accept electrons from the reduced acceptor efficiently. A differential extinction coefficient of 225-240 mM(-1) cm(-1) at 798 nm was determined from experiments in the presence of methylene blue. Transient absorption difference spectra between 400 and 500 nm in the presence and absence of artificial accepters indicated that the electron acceptor involved in the 20 ms recombination has an absorption spectrum similar to that of an iron-sulfur center. This iron-sulfur center was assigned to be analogous to F-X of Photosystem I. Our results provide evidence in support of the presence of F-X in heliobacteria, which was proposed on the basis of the reaction center polypeptide sequence (Liebl et al. (1993) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 90: 7124-7128). Implications for the electron transfer pathway in the reaction center of heliobacteria are discussed.