Cryo-EM structures of the Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 cytochrome b6f complex with and without the regulatory PetP subunit

In oxygenic photosynthesis, the cytochrome b(6)f (cytb(6)f) complex links the linear electron transfer (LET) reactions occurring at photosystems I and II and generates a transmembrane proton gradient via the Q-cycle. In addition to this central role in LET, cytb(6)f also participates in a range of processes including cyclic electron transfer (CET), state transitions and photosynthetic control. Many of the regulatory roles of cytb(6)f are facilitated by auxiliary proteins that differ depending upon the species, yet because of their weak and transient nature the structural details of these interactions remain unknown. An apparent key player in the regulatory balance between LET and CET in cyanobacteria is PetP, a similar to 10 kDa protein that is also found in red algae but not in green algae and plants. Here, we used cryogenic electron microscopy to determine the structure of the Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 cytb(6)f complex in the presence and absence of PetP. Our structures show that PetP interacts with the cytoplasmic side of cytb(6)f, displacing the C-terminus of the PetG subunit and shielding the C-terminus of cytochrome b(6), which binds the heme cn cofactor that is suggested to mediate CET. The structures also highlight key differences in the mode of plastoquinone binding between cyanobacterial and plant cytb(6)f complexes, which we suggest may reflect the unique combination of photosynthetic and respiratory electron transfer in cyanobacterial thylakoid membranes. The structure of cytb(6)f from a model cyanobacterial species amenable to genetic engineering will enhance future site-directed mutagenesis studies of structure-function relationships in this crucial ET complex.

Automated summary

In this study, the structure of the Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 cytb(6)f complex in the presence and absence of PetP was determined using cryogenic electron microscopy. The results revealed that PetP interacts with cytb(6)f, affecting the structure and function of the complex, and thereby regulating the electron transfer process in photosynthesis.