Regulating the Energy Flow in a Cyanobacterial Light Harvesting Antenna Complex
Abstract
Photosynthetic organisms harvest light energy, utilizing the absorption and energy transfer properties of protein-bound chromophores. Controlling the harvesting efficiency is critical for the optimal function of the photosynthetic apparatus. Here, we show that cyanobacterial light-harvesting antenna may be able to regulate the flow of energy in order to switch reversibly from efficient energy conversion to photo-protective quenching via a structural change. We isolated cyanobacterial light harvesting proteins, phycocyanin and allophycocyanin, and measured their optical properties in solution and in an aggregated-desiccated state. The results indicate that energy band structures are changed, generating a switch between two modes of operation: exciton transfer and quenching; achieved without dedicated carotenoid quenchers. This flexibility can contribute greatly to the large dynamic range of cyanobacterial light harvesting systems.
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Cite
@article{arxiv.1707.00817,
title = {Regulating the Energy Flow in a Cyanobacterial Light Harvesting Antenna Complex},
author = {do Eisenberg and Felipe Caycedo-Soler and Dvir Harris and Shira Yochelis and Susana F. Huelga and Martin B. Plenio and Noam Adir and Nir Keren and Yossi Paltiel},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1707.00817},
year = {2017}
}
Comments
Published at J. Phys. Chem. B