Binding Mechanisms of Electron Transport Proteins with Cyanobacterial Photosystem I: An Integrated Computational and Experimental Model

Electrochemically Gated Long-Distance Charge Transport in Photosystem I

The transport of electrons along photosynthetic and respiratory chains involves a series of enzymatic reactions that are coupled through redox mediators, including proteins and small molecules. The use of native and synthetic redox probes is key to understanding charge transport mechanisms and to the design of bioelectronic sensors and solar energy conversion devices. However, redox probes have limited tunability to exchange charge at the desired electrochemical potentials (energy levels) and at different protein sites. Herein, we take advantage of electrochemical scanning tunneling microscopy (ECSTM) to control the Fermi level and nanometric position of the ECSTM probe in order to study electron transport in individual photosystem I (PSI) complexes. Current-distance measurements at different potentiostatic conditions indicate that PSI supports long-distance transport that is electrochemically gated near the redox potential of P700, with current extending farther under hole injection conditions.