Model for the fluorescence induction curve of photoinhibited thylakoids

The fluorescence induction curve of photoinhibited thylakoids measured in the presence of 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethyl urea was modeled using an extension of the model of Lavergne and Trissl (Biophys. J. 68:2474-2492), which takes into account the reversible exciton trapping by photosystem II (PSII) reaction centers and exciton exchange between PSII units. The model of Trissl and Lavergne was modified by assuming that PSII consists of photosynthetically active and photoinhibited (inactive in oxygen evolution) units and that the inactive PSII units can efficiently dissipate energy even if they still retain the capacity for the charge separation reaction. Comparison of theoretical and experimental fluorescence induction curves of thylakoids, which had been subjected to strong light in the presence of the uncoupler nigericin, suggests connectivity between the photoinhibited and active PSII units. The model predicts that photoinhibition lowers the yield of radical pair formation in the remaining active PSII centers. However, the kinetics of PSII inactivation in nigericin-treated thylakoids upon exposure to photoinhibitory light ranging from 185 to 2650 micromol photons m-2 s-1 was strictly exponential. This may suggest that photoinhibition occurs independently of the primary electron transfer reactions of PSII or that increased production of harmful substances by photoinhibited PSII units compensates for the protection afforded by the quenching of excitation energy in photoinhibited centers.