Salt- and pH-Dependent Thermal Stability of Photocomplexes from Extremophilic Bacteriochlorophyll b-Containing Halorhodospira Species

Halorhodospira (Hlr.) species are the most halophilic and alkaliphilic of all purple bacteria. Hlr. halochloris exhibits the lowest LH1 Q(y) transition energy among phototrophic organisms and is the only known triply extremophilic anoxygenic phototroph, displaying a thermophilic, halophilic, and alkaliphilic phenotype. Recently, we reported that electrostatic charges are responsible for the unusual spectroscopic properties of the Hlr. halochloris LH1 complex. In the present work, we examined the effects of salt and pH on the spectroscopic properties and thermal stability of LH1-RCs from Hlr. halochloris compared with its mesophilic counterpart, Hlr. abdelmalekii. Experiments in which the photocomplexes were subjected to different levels of salt or variable pH revealed that the thermal stability of LH1-RCs from both species was largely retained in the presence of high salt concentrations and/or at alkaline pH but was markedly reduced by lowering the salt concentration and/or pH. Based on the amino acid sequences of LH1 polypeptides and their composition of acidic/basic residues and the Hofmeister series for cation/anion species, we discuss the importance of electrostatic charge in stabilizing the Hlr. halochloris LH1-RC complex to allow it to perform photosynthesis in its warm, hypersaline, and alkaline habitat.

Automated summary

Halorhodospira (Hlr.) species are the most halophilic and alkaliphilic purple bacteria. Hlr. halochloris is the only known photoautotroph that can perform photosynthesis under thermophilic, halophilic, and alkaliphilic conditions. Electrostatic charges play a crucial role in the spectroscopic properties and thermal stability of Hlr. halochloris.