9726635 Babcock This award supports the participation of American scientists and engineers in a U.S.-Japan seminar on proton-coupled electron transfer, to be held in Kona, Hawaii, November 11- 15, 1998. The co-organizers are Professor Gerald Babcock of Michigan State University and Professor Teizo Kitagawa of the Okazaki National Research Institute in Japan. Recent rapid advances have been made in this area. The x-ray crystal structures of the bacterial reaction center, the cytochrome oxidase and the cytochrome bc1 complex have been solved. Important structural work has come from studies using resonance raman infrared and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. In addition models for proton coupling to electron transfer and pathways for proton transfer into the electron transfer site have been presented and tested by kinetic measurements, site directed mutagenesis, theoretical calculations and other methods. Discussions will focus on these models. This area of research has important applications in photosynthesis and respiration; oxygen evolution in photosystem II and oxygen reduction in cytochrome c oxidase, quinone reduction in bacterial reaction centers and quinone reactions in the cytochrome bc1 complex. The exchange of ideas and data with Japanese experts in this field will enable U.S. participants to advance their own work, and will set the stage for future collaborative projects. Seminar organizers have made a special effort to involve a mix of researchers, including postdoctoral researchers and graduate students. Proceedings of the meeting are expected to be made available by the organizers. ***
