Structural evolution of the chromophore in the primary stages of trans/cis isomerization in photoactive yellow protein

We have studied the structural changes induced by optical excitation of the chromophore in wild-type photoactive yellow protein (PYP) in liquid solution with a combined approach of polarization-sensitive ultrafast infrared spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations. We identify the vC(8)- C-9 marker modes for solution phase PYP in the P and I-0 states, from which we derive that the first intermediate state I-0 that appears with a 3 ps time constant can be characterized to have a cis geometry. This is the first unequivocal demonstration that the formation of I-0 correlates with the conversion from the trans to the cis state. For the P and I-0 states we compare the experimentally measured vibrational band patterns and anisotropies with calculations and find that for both trans and cis configurations the planarity of the chromophore has a strong influence. The C-7=C-8-(C-9=O)-S moiety of the chromophore in the dark P state has a trans geometry with the C=O group slightly tilted out-of-plane, in accordance with the earlier reported structure obtained in an X-ray diffraction study of PYP crystals. In the case of I-0, experiment and theory are only in agreement when the C-7=C8-(C-9=O)-S moiety has a planar configuration. We find that the carboxylic side group of Glu46 that is hydrogen-bonded to the chromophore phenolate oxygen does not alter its orientation on going from the electronic ground P state, via the electronic excited P* state to the intermediate I-0 state, providing conclusive experimental evidence that the primary stages of PYP photoisomerization involve flipping of the enone thioester linkage without significant relocation of the phenolate moiety.