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The PSI-H polypeptide consists of a membrane spanning hydrophobic domain sandwiched between a very hydrophilic and highly conserved N-terminal domain which protrudes in the stroma, and a second hydrophilic domain. The hydrophobic domain is not conserved. This pattern is opposite to that of PSI-G and K, where the membrane spanning hydrophobic segments are highly conserved and the hydrophilic ones are not.
PSI-H may act as an anchor for the PSI-D polypeptide. It has been suggested that the PSI-H polypeptide and the N-terminal domains of PSI-D and PSI-E may constitute a system for binding the peripheral polypeptides of the PSI complex in plants. It has also been suggested that it may bind the LHCI polypeptides.
A query for psaH addressed to the various protein databases listed in the Biology Workbench, yielded 21 records which are depicted under Sequenced PSI-H. These sequences can be used for Sequence Similarity Searches or other manipulations using one of several routines described in the Biology Workbench or elsewhere (see AntheproW which can be downloaded via anonymous ftp from: ibcp.fr; pub/Antheprot/Windows/anthe 3_1 directory). For example a Blast Sequence Similarity Search of barley PSI-H addressed to the Biology Workbench (SwissProt database) is depicted below.