The concentrations and thermodynamic activities of cations in intact Bryopsis chloroplasts

A protet-based, protonic charge transfer model of energy coupling in oxidative and photosynthetic phosphorylation

Textbooks of biochemistry will explain that the otherwise endergonic reactions of ATP synthesis can be driven by the exergonic reactions of respiratory electron transport, and that these two half-reactions are catalyzed by protein complexes embedded in the same, closed membrane. These views are correct. The textbooks also state that, according to the chemiosmotic coupling hypothesis, a (or the) kinetically and thermodynamically competent intermediate linking the two half-reactions is the electrochemical difference of protons that is in equilibrium with that between the two bulk phases that the coupling membrane serves to separate. This gradient consists of a membrane potential term Δψ and a pH gradient term ΔpH, and is known colloquially as the protonmotive force or pmf. Artificial imposition of a pmf can drive phosphorylation, but only if the pmf exceeds some 150-170mV; to achieve in vivo rates the imposed pmf must reach 200mV. The key question then is 'does the pmf generated by electron transport exceed 200mV, or even 170mV?' The possibly surprising answer, from a great many kinds of experiment and sources of evidence, including direct measurements with microelectrodes, indicates it that it does not. Observable pH changes driven by electron transport are real, and they control various processes; however, compensating ion movements restrict the Δψ component to low values. A protet-based model, that I outline here, can account for all the necessary observations, including all of those inconsistent with chemiosmotic coupling, and provides for a variety of testable hypotheses by which it might be refined.

Calcium signaling in plant endosymbiotic organelles: mechanism and role in physiology

Recent studies have demonstrated that chloroplasts and mitochondria evoke specific Ca(2+) signals in response to biotic and abiotic stresses in a stress-dependent manner. The identification of Ca(2+) transporters and Ca(2+) signaling molecules in chloroplasts and mitochondria implies that they play roles in controlling not only intra-organellar functions, but also extra-organellar processes such as plant immunity and stress responses. It appears that organellar Ca(2+) signaling might be more important to plant cell functions than previously thought. This review briefly summarizes what is known about the molecular basis of Ca(2+) signaling in plant mitochondria and chloroplasts.

The role of calcium in chloroplasts--an intriguing and unresolved puzzle

More than 70 years of studies have indicated that chloroplasts contain a significant amount of calcium, are a potential storage compartment for this ion, and might themselves be prone to calcium regulation. Many of these studies have been performed on the photosynthetic light reaction as well as CO(2) fixation via the Calvin-Benson-Bassham cycle, and they showed that calcium is required in several steps of these processes. Further studies have indicated that calcium is involved in other chloroplast functions that are not directly related to photosynthesis and that there is a calcium-dependent regulation similar to cytoplasmic calcium signal transduction. Nevertheless, the precise role that calcium has as a functional and regulatory component of chloroplast processes remains enigmatic. Calcium concentrations in different chloroplast subcompartments have been measured, but the extent and direction of intra-plastidal calcium fluxes or calcium transport into and from the cytosol are not yet very well understood. In this review we want to give an overview over the current knowledge on the relationship between chloroplasts and calcium and discuss questions that need to be addressed in future research.

Evidence for direct roles of calcium in photosynthesis

Calcium may function directly in several aspects of photosynthesis. It appears to modulate activity of the phosphatase enzymes in the carbon reduction cycle and also to regulate chloroplast NAD+ kinase activity through a calmodulin-like protein. Some evidence supports a calcium function in the water-splitting complex, and other evidence indicates a reaction center function in photosystem II. Calcium in reaction center II may be tightly bound in chloroplasts and weakly bound in blue-green algal thylakoids. Free calcium concentration in stroma is probably less than 10(-6) M, although the absolute concentration is not yet known. Intrathylakoid calcium content is likely very high. Stromal calcium may regulate several enzyme activities, while intrathylakoid calcium may promote photosystem II constitutively. Results to date demonstrate the need for more attention to cation composition in studies of both light and dark reactions of photosynthesis, and the need to identify free calcium levels in chloroplasts.

Possible energization of K+ accumulation into metabolizing yeast by the protonmotive force. Binding correction to be applied in the calculation of the yeast membrane potential from tetraphenylphosphonium distribution

Membrane potentials of yeast cells, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, calculated from the equilibrium distribution of tetraphenylphosphonium (TPP) between cell-water and medium should be corrected for a contribution due to binding of TPP to intracellular constituents. The magnitude of this correction depends upon the way in which it is determined. In cells permeabilized by boiling, cell-binding is much higher than in cells permeabilized by repeated freezing and thawing. The binding corrections are 75 +/- 1 mV and 49 +/- 7 mV, respectively. The binding correction obtained from TPP distribution between deenergized cells and medium is much lower and amounts to 19 +/- 9 mV. The latter value is probably more reliable. It is supposed that permeabilization of the cells by boiling or repeated freezing and thawing unmasks potential TPP binding groups in the cell. The K+ accumulation into anaerobically metabolizing yeast cells can be accounted for almost quantitatively by a cotransport of protons and K+ ions if the lower binding correction is applied. This means that K+ accumulation into the yeast cell may be driven by the sum of the protonmotive force and the membrane potential.

Potassium, sodium, and chloride content of isolated intact chloroplasts in relation to ionic compartmentation in leaves

Intact chloroplasts were isolated from spinach, sugarbeet, and pea leaves by a rapid procedure which included purification on a two-step Percoll gradient. The content of K+, Na+, and Cl- was determined together with the chloroplast volume from which the apparent concentration of these ions in the chloroplast was calculated. It was demonstrated by successive washing that K+ leaked out of the chloroplasts during isolation whereas Na+ and Cl- did not. For spinach and sugarbeet chloroplasts K+ was the predominant monovalent cation (160-200 mM) with Na+ present in lesser amounts (40-70 mM). Pea chloroplasts contained equal amounts of K+ and Na+ (40 mM). The Cl- concentration in the chloroplast was similar for the three species and was calculated to be near 100 mM. The Cl- concentration in the chloroplast was well above that of the leaf tissue implying accumulation of Cl- in the chloroplast. Qualitatively similar results were obtained for chloroplasts isolated by rapidly fractionating protoplasts of wheat and barley although the concentration of ions was lower than for the above three species. Spinach grown in 200 mM NaCl accumulated high levels of Na+ and Cl- in the leaves but K+ was decreased. The replacement of K+ by Na+ was also observed in the chloroplasts but the level of Cl- in the chloroplast was not greatly increased even at leaf Cl- in excess of 200 mM. Replacement of K+ by Na+ in the nutrient solution also resulted in replacement of K+ by Na+ both in the leaf and in the chloroplast. Spinach grown under Cl- deficiency showed a 70% decrease in growth and a similar decrease in leaf Cl- but the concentration of Cl- in the chloroplast was not significantly decreased. It is concluded that in most instances K+ is the dominant monovalent cation in chloroplasts, although replacement by Na+ can occur to some extent. Chloride is a major anion, being accumulated within the chloroplast at low leaf Cl- and excluded from the chloroplast at high leaf Cl-. Ionic compartmentation within the leaf cell appears to be regulated to maintain a relatively constant level of Cl- in the chloroplast.