Quantum efficiencies of the reversible photoreaction of octopus rhodopsin

The classic method of photometric curves for photosensitivity determination has been extended to the case of photoreversible reactions and applied to the octopus rhodopsin --> acid metarhodopsin photoreaction. In such cases, measurements at one irradiation wavelength yield the sum of the photosensitivities of the forward and reverse processes. However, by using different irradiation wavelengths, together with appropriate molar extinction coefficients, the quantum efficiencies for both reactions may be resolved. For detergent-solubilized octopus rhodopsin at room temperature, pH 7, the quantum yields are found to be 0.69 (+/- 0.03) for rhodopsin --> metarhodopsin, in line with values observed in a range of vertebrate visual pigments, and 0.43 (+/- 0.02) for the reverse photoregeneration process. The similarities in overall photosensitivities of the forward and reverse reactions in the visible region are consistent with a significant physiological role for photoreversal in the cephalopod visual cycle.