THE PHOTOSYNTHETIC CHROMATOPHORE

这个子项目是利用资源的许多研究子项目之一。 由NIH/NCRR资助的中心拨款提供。对子项目的主要支持 子项目的首席调查员可能是由其他来源提供的， 包括美国国立卫生研究院的其他来源。为子项目列出的总成本可能 表示该子项目使用的中心基础设施的估计数量， 不是由NCRR赠款提供给次级项目或次级项目工作人员的直接资金。 色团是一种假细胞器，负责收集光线和 随后以三磷酸腺苷的形式将光能转换成化学能 (http://www.ks.uiuc.edu/Research/psures).)在由光子吸收产生的初始激发之后 发色团中的捕光蛋白，激发能量在 多步骤过程到反应中心(RC)。在RC处，激励能量用于 充电一个苯二酚分子，然后它在富含蛋白质的色团中扩散 膜到BC$_1$。带电的苯二酚在那里被氧化以产生质子梯度 跨膜，进而通过三磷酸腺苷合成酶驱动三磷酸腺苷的产生。穿着紫色的 细菌，如球形红杆菌，负责捕获光子的蛋白质是 称为捕光复合体1(LH1)和捕光复合体2(LH2)。LH1 与生色团中发现的另外两种蛋白质RC和PufX结合形成LH1- RC-PufX二聚体复合体。LH2和LH1-RC-PufX具有双重功能；它们不仅 负责捕获光能，它们也诱导膜弯曲来塑造 生色团进入，例如，囊泡或管状物。因此，了解该系统是相关的 生物物理学中的两个基本问题，即膜Moronegens和细胞 能源生产。

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. Primary support for the subproject and the subproject's principal investigator may have been provided by other sources, including other NIH sources. The Total Cost listed for the subproject likely represents the estimated amount of Center infrastructure utilized by the subproject, not direct funding provided by the NCRR grant to the subproject or subproject staff. The chromatophore is a pseudo-organelle that is responsible for harvesting light and subsequent conversion of light energy to chemical energy in the form of ATP (http://www.ks.uiuc.edu/Research/psures). After initial excitation from photon absorption by the light harvesting proteins in the chromatophore, excitation energy is tranferred in a multi-step process to a reaction center (RC). At the RC the excitation energy is used to charge a quinone molecule, which then diffuses through the protein-rich chromatophore membrane to a bc$_1$. There the charged quinone is oxidized to produce a proton gradient across the membrane, which in turn drives ATP production by ATP synthase. In purple bacteria, such as Rhodobacter sphaeroides, the protein responsible for photon capture are known as light harvesting complex 1 (LH1) and light harvesting complex 2 (LH2). LH1 associates with two other proteins found in the chromatophore, RC and PufX, to form LH1- RC-PufX dimer complexes. LH2 and LH1-RC-PufX have a dual function; not only are they responsible for capturing light energy, they also induce membrane curvature to shape the chromatophore into, e.g., vesicles or tubes. Therefore, the systemis relevant to understand two fundamental questions in biophysics, namely membrane morphonegensis and cellular energy production.