Incoherent Oscillations Accompanying Charge Separation in Photosynthetic Reaction Centers

A. G. Yakovlev, V. A. Shuvalov

A.N. Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia.
Institute of Basic Biological Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia.

DOI: 10.4236/ojapps.2013.33B001                

Abstract

Early events of charge separation in reaction centers (RCs) of bacterial photosynthesis are modeled by kinetic equations with time-dependent rate constants. An illustrative case of regular motion along a “slow” coordinates leading to oscillations in the kinetics is examined. Different schemes of charge separation are investigated. A good fitting of experimental kinetics of native Rba. sphaeroides RCs is achieved in the five states model P*₁B_AH_A↔P*₂B_AH_A↔I↔P⁺H_A↔P⁺B_A with two excited states B_AH_A and B_AH_A and three charge separated states I, P⁺H_A and P⁺B_A (P is a primary electron donor, bacteriochlorophyll dimer, B_A and H_A are an electron acceptor, monomeric bacteriochlorophyll and bacteriopheophytin in active A-branch, respectively). In the model only the first excited state is directly populated by optical excitation. The emission of the two excited states is assumed to be at 905 and 940 nm, respectively. The intermediate state I is assumed to absorb at 1020 nm as well as the P⁺H_A state. The model explains the deep oscillations in the kinetics of the stimulated emission and of the absorption. In the simpler schemes without the I state or with only one excited state the accordance with the experiment is achieved at unreal parameter values. A possible nature of the I and B_AH_A states and a possible incoherent nature of the oscillations are discussed.

Keywords

Photosynthesis; Charge Separation; Reaction Center; Electron Transfer

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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