Stabilization of Photosystem II (O(2) Evolution) of Spinach Chloroplasts by Radiation-induced Immobilization.

Spinach chloroplasts were immobilized with vinyl monomers by radiation-induced polymerization at low temperature and stored in buffer containing bovine serum albumin. The lifetime of O(2) evolution activity in photosystem II was prolonged remarkably in immobilized chloroplasts. Thermostability of immobilized chloroplasts stored in buffer containing bovine serum albumin was far better than that of immobilized chloroplasts in pure buffer and that of intact chloroplasts. When immobilized chloroplasts were stored in buffer including polyethylene glycol, the lifetime of O(2) evolution activity was longer than for those stored in buffer containing bovine serum albumin.