The photosynthetic electron transport chain of Chlamydomonas reinhardi. VII. Photosynthetic phosphorylation by a mutant strain of Chlamydomonas reinhardi deficient in active P700.

Electron transport activity and absorbance changes associated with P700 were investigated in a mutant strain of Chlamydomonas reinhardi with impaired photosynthesis. This mutant strain, ac-8oa, cannot reduce NADP with electrons from either water or dye and ascorbate, but it has considerable Hill activity. The mutant strain shows none of the absorbance changes characteristic of P700. Although unable to carry out cyclic photosynthetic phosphorylation, ac-8oa is able to synthesize ATP when ferricyanide is provided as an electron acceptor. These observations lead to the conclusion that a site for the coupling of photosynthetic phosphorylation with electron transport must exist between the 2 photochemical systems.