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Science 15 July 2005:
Vol. 309. no. 5733, pp. 484 - 487
DOI: 10.1126/science.1110879
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Reports

Chromatic Adaptation of Photosynthetic Membranes

Simon Scheuring1* and James N. Sturgis2

Many biological membranes adapt in response to environmental conditions. We investigated how the composition and architecture of photosynthetic membranes of a bacterium change in response to light, using atomic force microscopy. Despite large modifications in the membrane composition, the local environment of core complexes remained unaltered, whereas specialized paracrystalline light-harvesting antenna domains grew under low-light conditions. Thus, the protein mixture in the membrane shows eutectic behavior and can be mimicked by a simple model. Such structural adaptation ensures efficient photon capture under low-light conditions and prevents photodamage under high-light conditions.

1 Institut Curie, Unité Mixte de Recherche–CNRS 168, 11 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75231 Paris Cedex 05, France.
2 Unité Propre de Recherche–9027 Laboratoire d'Indenierie de Systemes Macromoleculaires, Institut de Biologie Structurale et Microbiologie, CNRS, 31 Chemin Joseph Aiguier, 13402 Marseille Cedex 20, France.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: simon.scheuring{at}curie.fr

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Watching the Native Supramolecular Architecture of Photosynthetic Membrane in Red Algae: TOPOGRAPHY OF PHYCOBILISOMES AND THEIR CROWDING, DIVERSE DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS.
L.-N. Liu, T. J. Aartsma, J.-C. Thomas, G. E. M. Lamers, B.-C. Zhou, and Y.-Z. Zhang (2008)
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Vertebrate Membrane Proteins: Structure, Function, and Insights from Biophysical Approaches.
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Refinement of the x-ray structure of the RC LH1 core complex from Rhodopseudomonas palustris by single-molecule spectroscopy.
M. F. Richter, J. Baier, J. Southall, R. J. Cogdell, S. Oellerich, and J. Kohler (2007)
PNAS 104, 20280-20284
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