Chlorophyll a Fluorescence Yield as a Monitor of Both Active CO(2) and HCO(3) Transport by the Cyanobacterium Synechococcus UTEX 625.

Simultaneous measurements have been made of inorganic carbon accumulation (by mass spectrometry) and chlorophyll a fluorescence yield of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus UTEX 625. The accumulation of inorganic carbon by the cells was accompanied by a substantial quenching of chlorophyll a fluorescence. The quenching occurred even when CO(2) fixation was inhibited by iodoacetamide and whether the accumulation of inorganic carbon resulted from either active CO(2) or HCO(3) (-) transport. Measurement of chlorophyll a fluorescence yield of cyanobacteria may prove to be a rapid and convenient means of screening for mutants of inorganic carbon accumulation.