Hill Activity of Isolated Fractions of Broken Chloroplasts

Abstract

TO reproduce the phenomenon of photosynthesis in the absence of a natural photosynthetcic structure, such as the chloroplast, requires detailed knowledge about the chemical, physical, and structural relationships of the component parts of the system. Of particular interest to us are those reactions which involve conversion of photo-energy to electrochemical potential with subsequent release of oxygen. Our first approach, reported here, is concerned with the chlorophyll-containing particle size necessary for full retention of photo-activity in terms of the Hill reaction, which is defined as the light-induced transfer of electrons and/or evolution of oxygen in the presence of an added hydrogen acceptor.