1
|
Zheng M, Pang X, Chen M, Tian L. Ultrafast energy quenching mechanism of LHCSR3-dependent photoprotection in Chlamydomonas. Nat Commun 2024; 15:4437. [PMID: 38789432 PMCID: PMC11126702 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48789-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Photosynthetic organisms have evolved an essential energy-dependent quenching (qE) mechanism to avoid any lethal damages caused by high light. While the triggering mechanism of qE has been well addressed, candidates for quenchers are often debated. This lack of understanding is because of the tremendous difficulty in measuring intact cells using transient absorption techniques. Here, we have conducted femtosecond pump-probe measurements to characterize this photophysical reaction using micro-sized cell fractions of the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii that retain physiological qE function. Combined with kinetic modeling, we have demonstrated the presence of an ultrafast excitation energy transfer (EET) pathway from Chlorophyll a (Chl a) Qy to a carotenoid (car) S1 state, therefore proposing that this carotenoid, likely lutein1, is the quencher. This work has provided an easy-to-prepare qE active thylakoid membrane system for advanced spectroscopic studies and demonstrated that the energy dissipation pathway of qE is evolutionarily conserved from green algae to land plants.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mengyuan Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Photobiology, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100093, China
- China National Botanical Garden, Beijing, 100093, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Xiaojie Pang
- Key Laboratory of Photobiology, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100093, China
- China National Botanical Garden, Beijing, 100093, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Ming Chen
- Key Laboratory of Photobiology, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100093, China
- China National Botanical Garden, Beijing, 100093, China
| | - Lijin Tian
- Key Laboratory of Photobiology, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100093, China.
- China National Botanical Garden, Beijing, 100093, China.
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Petry S, Tremblay JC, Götze JP. Impact of Structure, Coupling Scheme, and State of Interest on the Energy Transfer in CP29. J Phys Chem B 2023; 127:7207-7219. [PMID: 37581578 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.3c01012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/16/2023]
Abstract
The Qy and Bx excitation energy transfer (EET) in the minor light-harvesting complex CP29 (LHCII B4.1) antenna complex of Pisum sativum was characterized using a computational approach. We applied Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) and the transition density cube (TDC) method to estimate the Coulombic coupling, based on a combination of classical molecular dynamics and quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics calculations. Employing TDC instead of FRET mostly affects the EET between chlorophylls (Chls) and carotenoids (Crts), as expected due to the Crts being spatially more challenging for FRET. Only between Chls, effects are found to be small (about only 0.1 EET efficiency change when introducing TDC instead of FRET). Effects of structural sampling were found to be small, illustrated by a small average standard deviation for the Qy state coupling elements (FRET/TDC: 0.97/0.94 cm-1). Due to the higher flexibility of the Bx state, the corresponding deviations are larger (FRET/TDC between Chl-Chl pairs: 17.58/22.67 cm-1, between Crt-Chl pairs: 62.58/31.63 cm-1). In summary, it was found for the Q band that the coupling between Chls varies only slightly depending on FRET or TDC, resulting in a minute effect on EET acceptor preference. In contrast, the coupling in the B band spectral region is found to be more affected. Here, the S2 (1Bu) states of the spatially challenging Crts may act as acceptors in addition to the B states of the Chls. Depending on FRET or TDC, several Chls show different Chl-to-Crt couplings. Interestingly, the EET between Chls or Crts in the B band is found to often outcompete the corresponding decay processes. The individual efficiencies for B band EET to Crts vary however strongly with the chosen coupling scheme (e.g., up to 0.29/0.99 FRET/TDC efficiency for the Chl a604/neoxanthin pair). Thus, the choice of the coupling scheme must involve a consideration of the state of interest.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- S Petry
- Department of Biology, Chemistry, Pharmacy, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - J C Tremblay
- Laboratoire de Physique et Chimie Théoriques, CNRS-Université de Lorraine, 57070 Metz, France
| | - J P Götze
- Department of Biology, Chemistry, Pharmacy, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Navakoudis E, Stergiannakos T, Daskalakis V. A perspective on the major light-harvesting complex dynamics under the effect of pH, salts, and the photoprotective PsbS protein. PHOTOSYNTHESIS RESEARCH 2023; 156:163-177. [PMID: 35816266 PMCID: PMC10070230 DOI: 10.1007/s11120-022-00935-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2022] [Accepted: 06/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The photosynthetic apparatus is a highly modular assembly of large pigment-binding proteins. Complexes called antennae can capture the sunlight and direct it from the periphery of two Photosystems (I, II) to the core reaction centers, where it is converted into chemical energy. The apparatus must cope with the natural light fluctuations that can become detrimental to the viability of the photosynthetic organism. Here we present an atomic scale view of the photoprotective mechanism that is activated on this line of defense by several photosynthetic organisms to avoid overexcitation upon excess illumination. We provide a complete macroscopic to microscopic picture with specific details on the conformations of the major antenna of Photosystem II that could be associated with the switch from the light-harvesting to the photoprotective state. This is achieved by combining insight from both experiments and all-atom simulations from our group and the literature in a perspective article.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eleni Navakoudis
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Cyprus University of Technology, 95 Eirinis Street, 3603, Limassol, Cyprus
| | - Taxiarchis Stergiannakos
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Cyprus University of Technology, 95 Eirinis Street, 3603, Limassol, Cyprus
| | - Vangelis Daskalakis
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Cyprus University of Technology, 95 Eirinis Street, 3603, Limassol, Cyprus.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Lou Y, Sun H, Zhu C, Yang K, Li X, Gao Z. PeVDE, a violaxanthin de-epoxidase gene from moso bamboo, confers photoprotection ability in transgenic Arabidopsis under high light. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:927949. [PMID: 36035723 PMCID: PMC9403991 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.927949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Plants employ an array of photoprotection mechanisms to alleviate the harmful effects of high light intensity. The violaxanthin cycle, which is associated with non-photochemical quenching (NPQ), involves violaxanthin de-epoxidase (VDE), and zeaxanthin epoxidase (ZEP) and is one of the most rapid and efficient mechanisms protecting plants under high light intensity. Woody bamboo is a class of economically and ecologically important evergreen grass species widely distributed in tropical and subtropical areas. However, the function of VDE in bamboo has not yet been elucidated. In this study, we found that high light intensity increased NPQ and stimulated the de-epoxidation of violaxanthin cycle components in moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis), whereas, samples treated with the VDE inhibitor (dithiothreitol) exhibited lower NPQ capacity, suggesting that violaxanthin cycle plays an important role in the photoprotection of bamboo. Further analysis showed that not only high light intensity but also extreme temperatures (4 and 42°C) and drought stress upregulated the expression of PeVDE in bamboo leaves, indicating that PeVDE is induced by multiple abiotic stresses. Overexpression of PeVDE under the control of the CaMV 35S promoter in Arabidopsis mutant npq1 mutant could rescue its NPQ, indicating that PeVDE functions in dissipating the excess absorbed light energy as thermal energy in bamboo. Moreover, compared with wild-type (Col-0) plants, the transgenic plants overexpressing PeVDE displayed enhanced photoprotection ability, higher NPQ capacity, slower decline in the maximum quantum yield of photosystem II (F v /F m ) under high light intensity, and faster recovery under optimal conditions. These results suggest that PeVDE positively regulates the response to high light intensity in bamboo plants growing in the natural environment, which could improve their photoprotection ability through the violaxanthin cycle and NPQ.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yongfeng Lou
- Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration/Beijing for Bamboo and Rattan Science and Technology, Institute of Gene Science and Industrialization for Bamboo and Rattan Resources, International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan, Beijing, China
- Jiangxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Biotechnology, Jiangxi Academy of Forestry, Nanchang, China
| | - Huayu Sun
- Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration/Beijing for Bamboo and Rattan Science and Technology, Institute of Gene Science and Industrialization for Bamboo and Rattan Resources, International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan, Beijing, China
| | - Chenglei Zhu
- Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration/Beijing for Bamboo and Rattan Science and Technology, Institute of Gene Science and Industrialization for Bamboo and Rattan Resources, International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan, Beijing, China
| | - Kebin Yang
- Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration/Beijing for Bamboo and Rattan Science and Technology, Institute of Gene Science and Industrialization for Bamboo and Rattan Resources, International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan, Beijing, China
| | - Xueping Li
- Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration/Beijing for Bamboo and Rattan Science and Technology, Institute of Gene Science and Industrialization for Bamboo and Rattan Resources, International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan, Beijing, China
| | - Zhimin Gao
- Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration/Beijing for Bamboo and Rattan Science and Technology, Institute of Gene Science and Industrialization for Bamboo and Rattan Resources, International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan, Beijing, China
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Kim E, Kubota-Kawai H, Kawai F, Yokono M, Minagawa J. Conformation of Light-Harvesting Complex II Trimer Depends upon Its Binding Site. J Phys Chem B 2022; 126:5855-5865. [PMID: 35920883 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c04061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The light-harvesting complex II (LHCII) trimer in plants functions as a major antenna complex and a quencher to protect it from photooxidative damage. Theoretical studies on the structure of an LHCII trimer have demonstrated that excitation energy transfer between chlorophylls (Chls) in LHCII can be modulated by its exquisite conformational fluctuation. However, conformational changes depending on its binding location have not yet been investigated, even though reorganization of protein complexes occurs by physiological regulations. In this study, we investigated conformational differences in LHCII by comparing published structures of an identical LHCII trimer in the three different photosystem supercomplexes from the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Our results revealed distinct differences in Chl configurations as well as polypeptide conformations of the LHCII trimers depending on its binding location. We propose that these configurational differences readily modulate the function of LHCII and possibly lead to a change in excitation-energy flow over the photosynthetic supercomplex.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eunchul Kim
- Division of Environmental Photobiology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan.,Department of Basic Biology, School of Life Science, Graduate University for Advanced Studies, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan
| | | | - Fumihiro Kawai
- Faculty of Science, Yamagata University, Yamagata 990-8560, Japan
| | - Makio Yokono
- Division of Environmental Photobiology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan.,Department of Basic Biology, School of Life Science, Graduate University for Advanced Studies, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan
| | - Jun Minagawa
- Division of Environmental Photobiology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan.,Department of Basic Biology, School of Life Science, Graduate University for Advanced Studies, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Khokhlov D, Belov A. Low-Lying Excited States of Natural Carotenoids Viewed by Ab Initio Methods. J Phys Chem A 2022; 126:4376-4391. [PMID: 35767689 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.2c02485] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Low-lying excited states of carotenoids (the optically dark 2Ag- and bright 1Bu+) are deeply involved in energy transfer processes in photosynthetic antennas, such as light harvesting and non-photochemical quenching. Though any ab initio modeling of these phenomena has to rely on precise energies of the carotenoid electronic states, the accurate evaluation of these states remains a challenging problem due to their different natures. The paper aims to study the accuracy of the excitation energies of the low-lying excited states of certain open- and closed-chain carotenoids obtained by a state-of-the-art multireference approach for electronic structure calculation. Here, density matrix renormalization group SCF (DMRGSCF) and a perturbative approach based on driven similarity renormalization group second-order multireference perturbation theory (DSRG-MRPT2) were used to treat the static and dynamic correlation, respectively. Nuclear geometries of the electronic states were optimized with DFT-based approaches. It is demonstrated that spin-flip TD-DFT can replace multiconfigurational methods for the geometry optimization of the 2Ag- state but not for the calculation of the excitation energy. Adiabatic excitation energies to the 1Bu+ state were shown to be within a margin of 1000 cm-1 with an appropriate flow parameter value. Adiabatic excitation energies to the 2Ag- state for the open-chain carotenoids lie within a range of experimental values (taking into account the broad range of experimental estimates); for the closed-chain ones, the error does not exceed 2000 cm-1. Ab initio stationary (1Ag- → 1Bu+) and transient (2Ag- → 1Bu+) absorption spectra were modeled for violaxanthin and lycopene, and these spectra showed good agreement with the experimental ones both in terms of the vibronic structure and the transition energies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Daniil Khokhlov
- Department of Chemistry, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow 119991, Russia
| | - Aleksandr Belov
- Department of Chemistry, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow 119991, Russia
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Pandit A. Structural dynamics of light harvesting proteins, photosynthetic membranes and cells observed with spectral editing solid-state NMR. J Chem Phys 2022; 157:025101. [DOI: 10.1063/5.0094446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Photosynthetic light-harvesting complexes have a remarkable capacity to perform robust photo physics at ambient temperatures and in fluctuating environments. Protein conformational dynamics and membrane mobility are processes that contribute to the light-harvesting efficiencies and control photoprotective responses. This short review describes the application of Magic Angle Spinning (MAS) NMR spectroscopy for characterizing the structural dynamics of pigment, protein and thylakoid membrane components related to light harvesting and photoprotection. I will discuss the use of dynamics-based spectral editing solid-state NMR for distinguishing rigid and mobile components and assessing protein, pigment and lipid dynamics on sub-nanosecond to millisecond timescales. Dynamic spectral editing NMR has been applied to investigate Light-Harvesting Complex II (LHCII) protein conformational dynamics inside lipid bilayers and in native membranes. Furthermore, we used the NMR approach to assess thylakoid membrane dynamics. Finally, it is shown that dynamics-based spectral editing NMR, for reducing spectral complexity, by filtering motion-dependent signals, enabled us to follow processes in live photosynthetic cells.
Collapse
|
8
|
Cignoni E, Cupellini L, Mennucci B. A fast method for electronic couplings in embedded multichromophoric systems. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2022; 34:304004. [PMID: 35552268 DOI: 10.1088/1361-648x/ac6f3c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/12/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Electronic couplings are key to understanding exciton delocalization and transport in natural and artificial light harvesting processes. We develop a method to compute couplings in multichromophoric aggregates embedded in complex environments without running expensive quantum chemical calculations. We use a transition charge approximation to represent the quantum mechanical transition densities of the chromophores and an atomistic and polarizable classical model to describe the environment atoms. We extend our framework to estimate transition charges directly from the chromophore geometry, i.e., bypassing completely the quantum mechanical calculations using a regression approach. The method allows to rapidly compute accurate couplings for a large number of geometries along molecular dynamics trajectories.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Edoardo Cignoni
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, University of Pisa, via G. Moruzzi 13, 56124, Pisa, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Cupellini
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, University of Pisa, via G. Moruzzi 13, 56124, Pisa, Italy
| | - Benedetta Mennucci
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, University of Pisa, via G. Moruzzi 13, 56124, Pisa, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Nowak J, Füller J, Walla PJ. Combined contributions of carotenoids and chlorophylls in two-photon spectra of photosynthetic pigment-protein complexes-A new way to quantify carotenoid dark state to chlorophyll energy transfer? J Chem Phys 2022; 156:191103. [PMID: 35597651 DOI: 10.1063/5.0089420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Transitions into the first excited state of carotenoids, Car S1, are optically forbidden in conventional one-photon excitation (OPE) but are possible via two-photon excitation (TPE). This can be used to quantify the amount of Car S1 to Chlorophyll (Chl) energy transfer in pigment-protein complexes and plants by observing the chlorophyll fluorescence intensity after TPE in comparison to the intensity observed after direct chlorophyll OPE. A parameter, ΦCoupling Car S1-Chl, can be derived that directly reflects relative differences or changes in the Car S1 → Chl energy transfer of different pigment-protein complexes and even living plants. However, very careful calibrations are necessary to ensure similar OPE and TPE excitation probabilities and transition energies. In plants, the exact same sample spot must be observed at the same time. All this is experimentally quite demanding. ΦCoupling Car S1-Chl also corrects intrinsically for direct chlorophyll TPE caused by larger chlorophyll excesses in the complexes, but recently it turned out that in certain TPE wavelengths ranges, its contribution can be quite large. Fortunately, this finding opens also the possibility of determining ΦCoupling Car S1-Chl in a much easier way by directly comparing values in TPE spectra observed at wavelengths that are either more dominated by Cars or Chls. This avoids tedious comparisons of OPE and TPE experiments and potentially allows measurement at even only two TPE wavelengths. Here, we explored this new approach to determine ΦCoupling Car S1-Chl directly from single TPE spectra and present first examples using known experimental spectra from Cars, Chl a, Chl b, LHC II, and PS 1.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Julia Nowak
- Technische Universität Braunschweig, Institute for Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, Department for Biophysical Chemistry, Gaußstr. 17, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Janin Füller
- Technische Universität Braunschweig, Institute for Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, Department for Biophysical Chemistry, Gaußstr. 17, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Peter Jomo Walla
- Technische Universität Braunschweig, Institute for Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, Department for Biophysical Chemistry, Gaußstr. 17, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
| |
Collapse
|