Requirement of galactolipids for photosystem I activity in lyophilized spinach chloroplasts

Abstract

1. The effect of monogalactosyl diacylglycerol and digalactosyl diacylglycerol on reconstitution of Photosystem I activity in heptane-extracted and galactolipase-treated spinach chloroplasts was investigated. 2. Both galactolipids, in a molar ratio with chlorophyll of 2.5, partially restored Photosystem I activity in heptane-extracted chloroplasts. An addition of saturating amounts of plastocyanin caused complete reactivation of Photosystem I. 3. Similarly, with galactolipase-treated chloroplasts, both galactolipids partially restored Phostosystem I activity and additional amounts of plastocyanin were required for complete reactivation. 4. The action of galactolipids on partial reconstitution of Photosystem I supports the suggestion of their structural role in the restoration of thylakoid membranes.