THE REACTION CENTER OF PHOTOSYNTHETIC BACTERIA

Abstract. Investigations on the bacterial photosynthetic reaction center have recently made several important steps forward. Progress has been made in measuring the time course of the light-driven reactions, and in understanding the thermodynamics of these processes, in determining the chemical-structural properties of the protein and its constituents, and in elucidating the functional relationship of the reaction center with the chromatophore membrane. Although the well-characterized Rhodopseudomonas sphaeroides reaction center has been the main exploratory vehicle in many of these studies, we now have an ever increasing body of information from bacteria of other species and genera. This work is providing information from which we can underline features that are common to bacterial reaction centers, but it also reveals differences which may reflect different selection pressures on the separate species.
In this report we shall describe the early photochemical events of the reaction center, summarize the comparative biology of the reaction center, and discuss some of the current physical-chemical problems pertaining to the redox components of the reaction center.