[Conditions for effective hydrogen photoevolution by chloroplasts in the presence of bacterial hydrogenase]

The hydrogen photoevolution was studied to compare the efficiency of chloroplasts or solubilized chlorophyll in the presence of hydrogenase from Clostridium butyricum and methylviologen which links the electron transfer from photosystems to the exogenous enzyme. The hydrogen evolution by chloroplasts in the absence of exogeneous electron donors (or in the presence of irreversibly oxidized dithiotreitol or cysteine) is probably limited by cyclic electron flow shot-circuiting the photosystem 1. Efficiency of hydrogen photoproduction when ascorbate or NADP.H are used as electron donors is probably limited by reverse reaction of photoreduced methylviologen with the oxidized electron donor. The combination of both dithiotreitol and ascorbate prevents the shot-circuiting of photosystem 1 by methylviologen; in this case the maximum efficiency of hydrogen photoevolution was achieved up to 400 mumol H2 per 1 mg chlorophyll per hour.