Potential for the use of photosystem II submembrane fractions immobilised in poly(vinylalcohol) to detect heavy metals in solution or in sewage sludge

Abstract

Photosystem II submembrane fractions were immobilised by entrapment in poly(vinylalcohol) bearing styrylpyridinium groups (PVA-SbQ). The properties of the immobilised material, in a single-compartment micro-photoelectrochemical cell using platinum electrodes in potentiostatic mode, were compared with native (free) samples. The optimal operating conditions were investigated (electron acceptor concentration, pH, temperature, time contact and chlorophyll concentration). The photocurrent of the immobilised fractions could be inhibited by pollutants such as heavy metals (mercury, copper, lead, cadmium, chromium, nickel, and zinc) in solution. The potential for use of this system to evaluate the toxicity of sewage sludges was shown.

Photoelectric Activity of Thylakoid Layer Formed on Gold via Aminoalkanethiol Self-Assembled Monolayers

“…Cliffel and coworkers 8,9 focused on the use of PSI monolayer formed on self-assembled monolayers for the photocurrent generation. Boucher et al 10 used PSII for the photocurrent generation and showed photocurrent inhibition in the presence of pollutants could be used for monitoring toxicity of sewage sludge. In the meantime, Lin et al 11,12 developed photosynthetic electrochemical cells (PECs) using thylakoid, in which thylakoid was either suspended in anolyte or immobilized on the surface.…”

Study of antioxidant properties of thylakoids and application in UV protection and repair of UV‐induced damage

“…Stabilization methods, other than lyophilization, such as physical entrapment of thylakoids in a PVA matrix or chemical bonds between thylakoids and a BSA-glutaraldehyde complex provided no more than a few weeks of stability at 4°C. [45][46][47] As DCIP reduction is based on the measurement of photosynthetic activity of electron transport located in PSII complex, other thylakoids complexes, such as PSI and cytochrome b6/f, could be still active. Moreover, the inactivation of the electron transport of thylakoids did not prevent them from having a protective effect against UV exposure.…”

Plant tissue-and photosynthesis-based biosensors

“…The advantage of this photosynthetic material is the high sensitivity towards pollutants provided by the direct contact between the functional sites and the operational medium. Submembrane fractions of the photosystems I isolated from spinach leaves (Bonenfant and Carpentier, 1990) and II from the thermophilic cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus (Koblizek et al, 2002) or spinach leaves (Carpentier and Lemieux, 1987;Rouillon et al, 2000), have also been employed.…”