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Updated: Jun 10, 2026

Autofluorescence Imaging to Evaluate Red Algae Physiology
Published on: February 17, 2023
A red-shifted chlorophyll
Min Chen1, Martin Schliep, Robert D Willows
1School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia. min.chen@sydney.edu.au
Abstract:
Chlorophylls are essential for light-harvesting and energy transduction in photosynthesis. Four chemically distinct varieties have been known for the past 60 years. Here we report isolation of a fifth, which we designate chlorophyll f. Its in vitro absorption (706 nanometers) and fluorescence (722 nanometers) maxima are red-shifted compared to all other chlorophylls from oxygenic phototrophs. On the basis of the optical, mass, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectra, we propose that chlorophyll f is [2-formyl]-chlorophyll a (C55H70O6N4Mg). This finding suggests that oxygenic photosynthesis can be extended further into the infrared region and may open associated bioenergy applications.
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