Circular symmetry of the light-harvesting 1 complex from Rhodospirillum rubrum is not perturbed by interaction with the reaction center

The effect of the interaction of the reaction center (RC) upon the geometrical arrangement of the bacteriochlorophyll a (BChla) pigments in the light-harvesting 1 complex (LH1) from Rhodospirillum rubrum has been examined using single molecule spectroscopy. Fluorescence excitation spectra at 1.8 K obtained from single detergent-solubilized as well as single membrane-reconstituted LH1-RC complexes showed predominantly (>70%) a single broad absorption maximum at 880-900 nm corresponding to the Q transition of the LH1 complex. This absorption band was independent of the polarization direction of the excitation light. The remaining complexes showed two mutually orthogonal absorption bands in the same wavelength region with moderate splittings in the range of DeltaE = 30-85 cm(-1). Our observations are in agreement with simulated spectra of an array of 32 strongly coupled BChla dipoles arranged in perfect circular symmetry possessing only a diagonal disorder of less than or equal to150 cm(-1). However, in contrast to LH1 complexes alone, excitation spectra that consist of a single absorption band were observed more frequently in the presence of the reaction center. Our results show that the interaction of the RC with the LH1 complex stabilizes the circular symmetric arrangement of the bacteriochlorophyll pigments and are in contradiction to recent studies by other groups using single molecule spectroscopy as well as cryoelectronmicroscopy and atomic force microscopy indicating that the RC induces an elliptical distortion of the LH1 complex. Possible reasons for this discrepancy are discussed.