Gloeothece is a non-heterocystous, unicellular cyanobacterium that is capable of aerobic N, fixation [I]. As in other diazotrophs, nitrogenase in Gloeothece consists of a MoFe-protein and an Feprotein. The Faprotein of Gloeothece nitrogenase can be resolved into two different, though antigenically similar, forms by SDS-PAGE. These two forms have apparent M, values of 38 500 and 40 000 respectively, and their relative concentrations vary according to prevailing environmental conditions [2].In purple photosynthetic bacteria such as Rhodospirillurn rubrum, the Fe-protein of nitrogenase undergoes reversible covalent modification by ADP-ribosylation [3]. The two forms of the Feprotein that CM be detected in extracts of R rubrum behave very similarly during SDSPAGE to the Fe-protein in extracts of Gloeothece. By analogy, therefore, it is assumed that the larger (M, = 40 000) form of the Gloeothece Faprotein arises by modification of the smaller (M, = 38 500) protein [2,4]. Consistent with this, the relative concentrations of the two forms of the Fe-protein can change even when nitrogenase synthesis is inhibited [2]. However, the nature of the modification of the Fe-protein in Gloeothece and other cyanobacteria [5] is currently unknown.Attempts to demonstrate ADP-nbosylabon of the Fe-protein in Gloeothece have proved unsuccessful For example, incubabon of Gloeothece w~th NaH,'2P04 for 6 h or w~th [8-l4CC] adenine for 24 h faded to generate any radioactwe Fe-protein In addibon, anfibodes rased agrunst ADP-ribose d d not react wth Fe-protein from Gloeothece, though they d d react w~th Fe-protein from R rubrum (J Cheng, H Hilz & J R Gallon, unpublished findings) On the other hand, Gloeothece contam proteins that react wth mfisera rased agmnst the enzymes that catalyse the reversible ADP-nbosylabon of the Fe-protein of R rubrum nitrogenase [6] However, there is no evldence that these Gloeothece proteins catalyse any ADP-nbosylabon reacbon Moreover, even if they do, their substrate is not, apparently, the Fe-protein of nitrogenaseIn an attempt to determine the nature of the modification of the Fe-protein in Gloeothece, both forms of the this protein were punfied by immunoprecipitahon, using antibodies raised against the Fe-protein from R rubrum, and SDSPAGE. The purified proteins were then subjected to digestion with trypsin and the peptide fragments obtained in this way were analyzed by matrix-assisted laser desorptiodionization time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry (MS). Preliminary MALDI-TOF MS of tryptic digests yielded similar spectra for both the larger (presumed modified) and smaller (presumed unmodified) forms of the Fe-protein of Gloeothece nitrogenase (Fig I). This indcates that both forms of the Fe-protein are derivatives of a single polypeptide. More detailed analysis [7,8] will, hopefully, pinpoint differences in the mass spectra of the two forms of the Fe-protein that will, in turn, elucidate both the nature and the precise site of modification of this protein in Gloeothece. Figw 1. MALDbTOF maw s p c b ...