Increase in the quantum yield of photoinhibition contributes to copper toxicity in vivo

The effect of copper on photoinhibition of photosystem II in vivo was studied in bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L. cv Dufrix). The plants were grown hydroponically in the presence of various concentrations of Cu2+ ranging from the optimum 0.3 &mgr;m (control) to 15 &mgr;m. The copper concentration of leaves varied according to the nutrient medium from a control value of 13 mg kg-1 dry weight to 76 mg kg-1 dry weight. Leaf samples were illuminated in the presence and absence of lincomycin at different light intensities (500-1500 &mgr;mol photons m-2 s-1). Lincomycin prevents the concurrent repair of photoinhibitory damage by blocking chloroplast protein synthesis. The photoinhibitory decrease in the light-saturated rate of O2 evolution measured from thylakoids isolated from treated leaves correlated well with the decrease in the ratio of variable to maximum fluorescence measured from the leaf discs; therefore, the fluorescence ratio was used as a routine measurement of photoinhibition in vivo. Excess copper was found to affect the equilibrium between photoinhibition and repair, resulting in a decrease in the steady-state concentration of active photosystem II centers of illuminated leaves. This shift in equilibrium apparently resulted from an increase in the quantum yield of photoinhibition (PhiPI) induced by excess copper. The kinetic pattern of photoinhibition and the independence of PhiPI on photon flux density were not affected by excess copper. An increase in PhiPI may contribute substantially to Cu2+ toxicity in certain plant species.