Absorption and fluorescence characteristics of photo-activated adenylate cyclase nano-clusters from the amoeboflagellate Naegleria gruberi NEG-M strain

Graphical abstract: Protein color center emissions were observed in the wavelength range from 340 nm to 900 nm from nano-clusters of the photo-activated adenylate cyclase (nPAC) from the amoeboflagellate Naegleria gruberi. Highlights: ► Adenylyl cyclase nPAC in aqueous pH 7.5 buffer dissolved only to nano-clusters. ► Nano-cluster size was determined by light attenuation (scattering) measurements. ► The size of the nano-clusters was growing by coalescing during observation period. ► In nPAC nano-clusters color centers were present in emission range of 360–900 nm. ► The nPAC color center emission is compared with fluorescent protein emission. - Abstract: The spectroscopic characteristics of BLUF (BLUF = sensor of blue light using flavin) domain containing soluble adenylate cyclase (nPAC = Naegleria photo-activated cyclase) samples from the amoeboflagellate Naegleria gruberi NEG-M strain is studied at room temperature. The absorption and fluorescence spectroscopic development in the dark was investigated over two weeks. Attenuation coefficient spectra, fluorescence quantum distributions, fluorescence quantum yields, and fluorescence excitation distributions were measured. Thawing of frozen nPAC samples gave solutions with varying protein nano-cluster size and varying flavin, tyrosine, tryptophan, and protein color-center emission. Protein color-center emission was observed in the wavelength range of 360–900 nm with narrow emission bands of small Stokes shift and broad emission bands of large Stokes shift. The emission spectra evolved in time with protein nano-cluster aging.