The state of activation of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase in wheat leaves.

In light and in darkness, exposure of leaf segments to CO2-free atmospheres caused a marked reduction in extractable RuBP carboxylase activity. By contrast, darkness caused a relatively small decrease in carboxylase activity in extracts from leaf segments kept in air containing CO2. Recovery of carboxylase activity in leaves during illumination in air after exposure to CO2-free conditions paralleled recovery of capacity for photosynthesis; in darkness recovery of carboxylase activity in leaves was slower than in the light. Extracts from leaves exposed to CO2-free conditions recovered activity when provided with CO2 and Mg(2+); there were clearly, however, substances in the extracts that modified the activity achieved and caused anomalous decreases and increases with time after extraction. Studies of the effect of orthophosphate on the activity of purified wheat carboxylase in vitro were consistent with the view that many of the effects observed on the activity of crude leaf extracts were due to orthophosphate content.