PSII supercomplex disassembly is not needed for the induction of energy quenching (qE)

Photoprotection by non-photochemical quenching is important for optimal growth and development, especially during dynamic changes of the light intensity. The main component responsible for energy dissipation is called qE. It has been proposed that qE involves the reorganization of the photosynthetic complexes and especially of Photosystem II. However, despite a number of studies, there are still contradictory results concerning the structural changes in PSII during qE induction. The main limitation in addressing this point is the very fast nature of the off switch of qE, since the illumination is usually performed in folio and the preparation of the thylakoids requires a dark period. To avoid qE relaxation during thylakoid isolation, in this work quenching was induced directly on isolated and functional thylakoids that were then solubilized in the light. The analysis of the quenched thylakoids in native gel showed only a small decrease in the large PSII supercomplexes (C₂S₂M₂/C₂S₂M) which is most likely due to photoinhibition/light acclimation since it does not recover in the dark. This result indicates that qE rise is not accompanied by a structural disassembly of the PSII supercomplexes.