Organization of Photosystem I Polypeptides (A Structural Interaction between the PsaD and PsaL Subunits)

The wild-type, PsaD-less, and PsaL-less strains of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 were used to study subunit interactions in photosystem I (PSI). When the membranes of a PsaD-less strain were solubilized with Triton X-100 and PSI was purified using ion-exchange chromatography and sucrose-gradient ultracentrifugation, the PsaL subunit was substantially removed from the core of PSI, whereas other subunits, such as PsaE and PsaF, were quantitatively retained during purification. When the wild-type PSI was exposed to increasing concentrations of NaI, the PsaE, PsaD, and PsaC subunits were gradually removed, whereas PsaF, PsaL, PsaK, and PsaJ resisted removal by up to 3 M NaI. The absence of PsaL enhanced the accessibility of PsaD to removal by NaI. Treatment of the wild-type PSI complexes with glutaraldehyde at 4[deg] C resulted in a 29-kD cross-linked product between PsaD and PsaL. The formation of such cross-linked species was independent of PSI concentrations, suggesting an intracomplex cross-linking between PsaD and PsaL. Taken together, these results demonstrate a structural interaction between PsaD and PsaL that plays a role in their association with the PSI core.