MERCURY-INDUCED ALTERATIONS OF CHLOROPHYLL a FLUORESCENCE KINETICS IN ISOLATED BARLEY (Hordeum vulgare L. cv. ALBORI) CHLOROPLASTS

Effects of HgCl$_2$-treatment on electron transport, chlorophyll a fluorescence and its quenching were studied using isolated barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv. Albori) chloroplasts. Depending on the concentration of HgCI$_2$, photosynthetic oxygen-evolving activities of photosystem II (PS II) were greatly inhibited, whereas those of photosystem I (PS I) were slightly decreased. The inhibitory effects of HgCl$_2$ on the oxygen-evolving activity was partially restored by the addition of hydroxyamine, suggesting the primary inhibition site by HgCl$_2$2-treatment is close to the oxidizing site of PS tl associated with water-splitting complex. Addition of 50 $\mu$M HgCI$_2$ decreased both photochemical and nonphotochemical quenching of chlorophyll fluorescence. Especially, energy dependent quenching (qE) was completely disappeared by HgCl$_2$-treatment as observed by NH$_4$CI treatment. In the presence of HgCI$_2$, F'o level during illumination was also increased. These results suggest that pH gradient across thylakoid membrane can not be formed in the presence of 0 $\mu$M HgCl$_2$. In addition, antenna pigment composition might be altered by HgCl$_2$-treatment.