The biochemical, biophysical, and physiological properties of the PsbS protein were studied in relation to mutations of two symmetry-related, lumen-exposed glutamate residues, Glu-122 and Glu-226. These two glutamates are targets for protonation during lumen acidification in excess light. Mutation of PsbS did not affect xanthophyll cycle pigment conversion or pool size. In conditions of excess light, photosynthetic light harvesting is regulated by a feedback de-excitation mechanism termed energy-dependent quenching (qE), 1 which increases thermal dissipation of excess absorbed light energy in photosystem II (PSII). The qE mechanism is triggered by conditions that limit photosynthetic carbon fixation and result in increased acidification of the chloroplast thylakoid lumen (1-4). The thermal dissipation of excess excitation energy is most commonly measured and referred to as nonphotochemical quenching (NPQ) of PSII chlorophyll (Chl) a fluorescence. Although there are several components of NPQ, in higher plants qE can account for the major part of NPQ and is characterized by its relatively fast induction and relaxation kinetics, on a physiological time scale of seconds to minutes. The decrease in the intensity of Chl fluorescence is the result of the decrease in the electronic excited state lifetime of Chl caused by an increased thermal dissipation rate constant (5). The rapid response of the qE process is chemically associated with changes in the trans-thylakoid membrane pH gradient (⌬pH). The ⌬pH change has at least two functions in qE. First, it activates the violaxanthin de-epoxidase that converts violaxanthin (V) to antheraxanthin (A) and zeaxanthin (Z) (6). A and/or Z are essential elements of qE (7-9). Second, the lower pH in the lumen results in protonation of PSII proteins, including the 22-kDa PSII subunit, PsbS, which plays a key role in qE (10). When both pH-induced changes occur together it is believed that Chls in PSII can transfer their excess energy to Z, which can return to the ground state via thermal decay (7,11,12). Plants containing PsbS mutations of both glutamatesThe pH-sensing mechanism of the PsbS protein is influenced by two pairs of symmetrically arranged glutamate residues, each located within or close to the two lumen-exposed loops of the protein (13). Dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCCD), a well known inhibitor of qE (14 -16) is a carboxylate-modifying agent (17) that binds to PsbS (18). Although it was suggested that the DCCD binding site is in the lumenal loops of PsbS, the exact binding site has not been determined. Importantly, site-directed mutagenesis experiments indicated that two of the PsbS glutamates, Glu-122 and Glu-226, are necessary for the function of PsbS (13).In this article we used single and double mutations of PsbS (E122Q/E226Q) to make a detailed biochemical and biophysical analysis of the role of these two glutamates in pH sensing and DCCD binding. We probed the role of the Glu-122 and Glu-226 residues by monitoring the changes in the PSII Chl a fluores-

Nonphotochemical quenching (NPQ) refers to a process that regulates photosynthetic light harvesting in plants as a response to changes in incident light intensity. By dissipating excess excitation energy of chlorophyll molecules as heat, NPQ balances the input and utilization of light energy in photosynthesis and protects the plant against photooxidative damage. To understand the physical mechanism of NPQ, we have performed femtosecond transient absorption experiments on intact thylakoid membranes isolated from spinach and transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana plants. These plants have well defined quenching capabilities and distinct contents of xanthophyll (Xan) cycle carotenoids. The kinetics probed in the spectral region of the S 1 3 S n transition of Xans (530 -580 nm) were found to be significantly different under the quenched and unquenched conditions, corresponding to maximum and no NPQ, respectively. The lifetime and the spectral characteristics indicate that the kinetic difference originated from the involvement of the S 1 state of a specific Xan, zeaxanthin, in the quenched case.G reen plants live with a continual paradox: They have evolved to both use and dissipate solar energy with high efficiency. Highly reactive, photooxidative intermediates are inevitable byproducts of photosynthesis. An excess photon flux can exacerbate the damage caused by these intermediates, leading to problems ranging from reversible decreases in photosynthetic efficiency, to, in the worst case, death of the plant. Nonphotochemical quenching (NPQ) is a process that thermally dissipates the absorbed light energy in photosystem (PS) II that exceeds a plant's capacity for CO 2 fixation, minimizing the deleterious effects of high light. Although NPQ has been phenomenologically documented for years, a fundamental understanding of its physical mechanism remains elusive (1-3).Feedback deexcitation or energy-dependent quenching (qE) (2, 3) is the major, rapidly reversible component of NPQ in a variety of plants, including spinach and Arabidopsis thaliana (4,5), and is the focus of this study. qE is characterized by a light-induced absorbance change at 535 nm (⌬A 535 ) (6) and the shortening of specific components of chlorophyll (Chl) fluorescence lifetimes, the exact numerical value for the shortened lifetime depending on the specific form of the photosynthetic system and the measurement conditions. For isolated thylakoid systems with closed reaction centers, a Chl lifetime component is reduced from Ϸ2.0 to Ϸ0.4 ns (4). It requires the buildup of a pH gradient (⌬pH) under high light conditions (2, 3), which triggers the enzymatic conversion of carotenoids, violaxanthin (Vio) to zeaxanthin (Zea), by means of the xanthophyll (Xan) cycle (Fig. 1a).Currently two hypotheses concerning the mechanism of qE exist, one in which the effect of Zea is solely structural (termed indirect quenching) and the other in which Zea acts as an energy acceptor for excitation transfer from the first Chl singlet excited state (termed direct quenching). The direct ...

Shiga toxins produced by E. coli O157:H7 are responsible for food poisoning and hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). The A subunits of Shiga toxins (Stx1A and Stx2A) inhibit translation by depurinating a specific adenine in the large rRNA. To determine if Stx1A and Stx2A require the ribosomal stalk for depurination, their activity and cytotoxicity were examined in the yeast P protein deletion mutants. Stx1A and Stx2A were less toxic and depurinated ribosomes less in a strain lacking P1/P2 on the ribosome and in the cytosol (ΔP2) than in a strain lacking P1/P2 on the ribosome, but containing free P2 in the cytosol (ΔP1). To determine if cytoplasmic P proteins facilitated depurination, Stx1A and Stx2A were expressed in the P0ΔAB mutant, in which the binding sites for P1/P2 were deleted on the ribosome, and P1/P2 accumulated in the cytosol. Stx1A was less toxic and depurinated ribosomes less in P0ΔAB, suggesting that intact binding sites for P1/P2 were critical. In contrast, Stx2A was toxic and depurinated ribosomes in P0ΔAB as in wild type, suggesting that it did not require the P1/P2 binding sites. Depurination of ΔP1, but not P0ΔAB ribosomes increased upon addition of purified P1α/P2β in vitro, and the increase was greater for Stx1 than for Stx2. We conclude that cytoplasmic P proteins stimulate depurination by Stx1 by facilitating the access of the toxin to the ribosome. Although ribosomal stalk is important for Stx1 and Stx2 to depurinate the ribosome, Stx2 is less dependent on the stalk proteins for activity than Stx1 and can depurinate ribosomes with an incomplete stalk better than Stx1.

Ricin and Shiga toxins designated as ribosome inactivating proteins (RIPs) are RNA N-glycosidases that depurinate a specific adenine (A4324 in rat 28S rRNA) in the conserved α-sarcin/ricin loop of the large rRNA, inhibiting protein synthesis. Evidence obtained from a number of studies suggests that interaction with ribosomal proteins plays an important role in the catalytic activity and ribosome specificity of RIPs. This review summarizes the recent developments in identification of the ribosomal proteins that interact with ricin and Shiga toxins and the principles governing these interactions.