Transient color sensitivity of the hill reaction during the disintegration of chloroplasts.

During the disintegration of isolated chloroplasts, the declining capacity for evolving oxygen in the light becomes temporarily color sensitive. The decline of Hill reaction rates follows a different time course if measured in either blue (380<λ<500 nm) or red light (λ>600 nm). Later, when only one-third or less of the original maximal capacity of the particular preparation is left, the rates of oxygen evolution in red or blue light become the same again.