title: Dynamic kerr effect measurements on photoreceptor disk membrane vesicles.
abstract: Dynamic Kerr effect measurements were performed with dilute aqueous suspensions of monodisperse spherical vesicles (approximately 1 micron diameter), isolated from the rod outer segment of bovine retina. A large birefringence, amounting to the specific Kerr constant of 10(-3) esu, can be observed. When a sufficiently long duration pulse (1 s) is applied, the decay of birefringence can be represented by a single exponential profile, yielding a relaxation time of 100 +/- 20 ms in 1 mM imidazole buffer. This is consistent with the rotatory relaxation time of these spherical membrane vesicles. When a short duration is applied, the birefringence increases more steeply and the decay profile contains several components. The slowest (terminal) relaxation time is 86 +/- 15 ms is due to the same process as the one observed in the slow pulse case.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001718:Birefringence; D002417:Cattle; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000502:physiology; D007700:Kinetics; D008433:Mathematics; D008954:Models, Biological; D010786:Photoreceptor Cells / Q000502:physiology*