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SOME OBSERVATIONS ON THE MORPHOGENESIS OF LATTICE STRUCTURE IN THE PURPLE MEMBRANE
Author(s) -
Usukura Jiro,
Yamada Eichi,
Mukohata Yasuo
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
photochemistry and photobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.818
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1751-1097
pISSN - 0031-8655
DOI - 10.1111/j.1751-1097.1981.tb05448.x
Subject(s) - bacteriorhodopsin , membrane , hexagonal crystal system , crystallography , triclinic crystal system , hexagonal lattice , biophysics , retinal , chemistry , crystal structure , biology , biochemistry , physics , antiferromagnetism , condensed matter physics
— The formation process of purple membrane was studied morphologically by freeze‐fracture and etching methods. The bacteria, H. halobium R 1 , cultured in the medium containing 2m M nicotine, did not show the hexagonal structure of purple membrane, but a particle free area was frequently observed in the plasma membrane. However, within 24h after returning to the normal medium, hexagonal and triclinic lattices with spacings of 6 to 8nm occurred as small patches on the P face of the plasma membrane. Furthermore, it was revealed that the retinal was not required for the formation of the two‐dimensional hexagonal lattice structure of purple membrane, since the mutant bacteria, H. halobium R 1 mW, lacking the ability of retinal synthesis, displayed a similar lattice. The other mutant, H. halobium R 1 mR, lacking the ability of bacterio‐opsin synthesis, never showed any highly ordered arrangement. This evidence suggests that membrane proteins other than bacterio‐opsin or bacteriorhodopsin do not form highly ordered lattices in the membrane.