Diurnal fluctuations were observed in the content and some structural and functional properties of the light-harvesting chlorophyll (Chi) a/b pigment-protein complex of photosystem 11 (LHCII) in young developing wheat (Triticum aestivum) leaves grown under 16 hours light/8 hours dark illumination regime. The fluctuations could be correlated with the diumal oscillation in the level of mRNA for LHCII. The most pronounced changes occurred in the basal segments of the leaves. They were weaker or hardly discernible in the middle and tip segments. As judged from the diurnal variations of the Chl-a/Chl-b molar ratio, the LHCII content of the thylakoid membranes peaked around 2 pm. This can be accounted for by the cumulative effect of the elevated level of mRNA in the morning and early afternoon. In the basal segment, the extent of the fluctuation in the LHCII content was approximately 25%, as determined from gel electrophoresis ("green gels"). The amplitude of the principal bands of the circular dichroism (CD) spectra of isolated chloroplasts paralleled the changes in the LHCII content. Our circular dichroism data suggest that the newly synthesized LHCII complexes are incorporated into the existing helically organized macrodomains of the pigmentprotein complexes or themselves form such macrodomains in the thylakoid membranes. Chl-a fluorescence induction kinetics also showed diumal variations especially in the basal segments of the leaves. This most likely indicates fluctuations in the ability of membranes to undergo "state transitions." These observations suggest a physiological role of diurnal rhythm of mRNA for LHCII in young developing leaves.The light-harvesting Chl a/b pigment-protein complex of PSII (LHCII3) is the predominant integral protein complex of 'This work was supported by grants OKKFT (Tt) 222/1988 and 56/1986 from the National Foundation of Technical Development (Hungary).

We investigated the diurnal fluctuation in the composition of the light harvesting chlorophyll a/b antenna of photosystem II in young wheat (Triticum aestivum) leaves grown under periodic day/night irradiation. By means of gel electrophoresis of the polypeptides of thylakoid membranes, we determined the amount of 25 kDa and 27 kDa polypeptides, which are the main components of the peripheral and inner antenna subpopulations, respectively. Our data show a preferential fluctuation in the amount of the 25 kDa protein relative to the 27 kDa polypeptide, in parallel to the fluctuation in the amount of chlorophyll a/b antenna of photosystem II, which suggests that the peripheral antenna plays a role in the diurnal adjustment of the antenna size.

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