A. IFTIME*, IOANA PLAJER**, CONSTANŢA GANEA*

*Department of Biophysics, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmaceutics, 8, Eroii Sanitari Blvd, 050474 Bucharest, Romania
**Department of Theoretical Informatics, “Transilvania” University, Braşov, Romania

Abstract. The effects of the lyotropic anions acetate, chloride and nitrate on the transient and stationary photocurrents of bacteriorhodopsin (bR) adsorbed to planar lipid bilayers were followed up at different anion concentrations. A different behavior was found in the case of kosmotropic (acetate) and chaotropic (nitrate) anions, both from the point of view of the transient and stationary currents dependency on anion concentration and from that of the photocycle kinetics. The effects of these anions were explained taking into account the possible interaction both with the dipole potential of the membrane and/or with the charged groups of the protein on one side and the influence on the transport properties of the protein on the other side.
Key words: bacteriorhodopsin, BLM, lyotropic anions, photocurrents.

Corresponding author’s e-mail: ad_if@yahoo.co.uk

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