Role of lipids in functions of photosynthetic membranes revealed by treatment with lipolytic acyl hydrolase.

1. Thylakoid membranes and subchloroplast particles I and II enriched in photosystem I and photosystem II, respectively, were treated with a potato lipolytic acyl hydrolase. 2. In the thylakoid membrane fraction, this treatment inhibited electron flows involving both photosystems and the associated photophosphorylations. However, electron flows involving either photosystem I or photosystem II were still preserved. The treatment of thylakoid membranes by lipolytic acyl hydrolase brought about a temporal convergence of different events such as maximal activity of reduced dichloroindophenol-supported electron flows, complete inhibition of photophosphorylations and electron transport activities through photosystem II + I, onset of the decay N,N,N',N-tetramethyl-rho-phenylenediamine-supported activity of photosystem activity and of the stimulation of photosystem activity (from reduced dichloroindophenol to NADP+ by exogenous plastocyanin. 3. Lipolytic acyl hydrolase catalyzed a limited hydrolysis of each lipid but in a stepwise manner, the galactolipids being attacked before the ionic lipids. The extent of the hydrolysis was not more than 50% for each lipid. Most of the hydrolytic process occurred before any significant change in photochemical activities could be observed. 4. In subchloroplast particles I, a treatment by lipolytic acyl hydrolase did not greatly affect the electron transport whilst lipid hydrolysis was almost complete. 5. In subchloroplast particles II, neither the electron flow activities nor lipid content were significantly altered by lipolytic acyl hydrolase. 6. The sites of lipolytic acyl hydrolase action appeared to be localized between plastoquinones and P700. It is suggested that it is not possible to establish a quantitative and/or temporal correlation between the extent of lipid hydrolysis and the inhibition of photochemical activities. 7. The profile of the hydrolysis of lipids in thylakoid membranes suggests that ionic lipids are less accessible to lipolytic acyl hydrolase than galactolipids.