STRUCTURE & FUNCTION OF PHOTOSYNTHETIC REACTION CENTERS

描述：在最广泛的意义上，费尔博士的目标是理解 物理机制方面的生物过程和现象；即 一个分子水平。这项提案所涉及的主要问题是 将电磁能转化为化学能；即， 光合作用。这是生物学中最基本的过程之一；所有 活着的世界的能量就是从它那里获得的。在这个问题的核心 光合作用是一种膜结合的蛋白质-色素复合体，称为 反应中心(RC)。费尔博士研究了脑细胞的结构和功能 RC和第二供体细胞色素c2。电子的作用机制 和发生在RC中的质子转移是普遍感兴趣的 在所有生命系统中都很重要。例如，发生在 线粒体(例如在哺乳动物细胞中)可以被视为相反的过程 利用类似的机制进行光合作用。此外，区域委员会，作为 最具特性的膜结合蛋白是一个很好的模型 对于在多种基因中执行重要功能的其他膜蛋白 生化过程。 用单晶来确定结构的必要性使Dr。 为进一步研究其结晶机理奠定了基础。 大分子。结晶，除了具有很大的实用性外 重要性，是分子联合(识别)的一个例子；a 生活世界中无处不在的现象。 这项工作涉及的领域和方法是跨学科的， 范围从物理到化学和分子生物学。这些技术 使用的有：X射线结晶学、电子显微镜和原子力显微镜、 光学和磁性(EPR/Endor)光谱学，计算性(例如蒙特卡罗 卡洛模拟)、蛋白质化学和重组DNA技术。 具体解决的问题有： 来自光合细菌Rb的原生和突变的RCS。Shaeroides，即 细胞色素c2的结构，RC-cytc2复合体，来自光系统的RC 绿色植物的第二部分.RCS中的电子转移.静电的计算 RCS中的能量与生物结晶的机制 大分子。

DESCRIPTION: In the broadest sense, Dr. Feher's objective is to understand biological processes and phenomena in terms of physical mechanisms; i.e., on a molecular level. The main problem addressed in this proposal deals with the conversion of electromagnetic energy into chemical energy; i.e., photosynthesis. This is one of the most basic processes in biology; all energy of the living world is derived from it. At the heart of the photosynthetic process is a membrane bound protein-pigment complex called the reaction center (RC). Dr. Feher studies the structure and function of the RC and the secondary donor, cytochrome c2. The mechanisms of electron and proton transfers that take place in the RC are of general interest and importance in all living systems. For instance, the processes that occur in mitochondria (e.g. in mammalian cells) can be viewed as the reverse process of photosynthesis utilizing similar mechanisms. Furthermore, the RC, being the best characterized membrane bound protein, serves as an excellent model for other membrane proteins that perform important functions in a variety of biochemical processes. The necessity of having single crystals to determine structures led Dr. Feher to a basic investigation of the crystallization mechanisms of macromolecules. Crystallization, in addition to being of great practical importance, serves as an example of molecular association (recognition); a ubiquitous phenomenon throughout the living world. The fields and methodologies involved in this work are interdisciplinary, ranging from physics to chemistry and molecular biology. The techniques used are: X-ray crystallography, electron and atomic force microscopy, optical and magnetic (EPR/ENDOR) spectroscopy, computational (e.g. Monte Carlo simulations), protein chemistry and recombinant DNA techniques. The specific problems addressed are: The three-dimensional structure of native and mutant RCs from the photosynthetic bacterium Rb. sphaeroides, the structures of cytochrome c2, the RC-cyt c2 complex, the RC from photosystem II of green plants; electron transfers in RCs, calculation of electrostatic energies in RCs and the mechanism of crystallization of biological macromolecules.