Protein-Framed Multi-Porphyrin Micelles for a Hybrid Natural-Artificial Light-Harvesting Nanosystem
Yannan Liu1, Jiyang Jin1, Hongping Deng1
1School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Metal Matrix Composites, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China.
Abstract:
A micelle-like hybrid natural-artificial light-harvesting nanosystem was prepared through protein-framed electrostatic self-assembly of phycocyanin and a four-armed porphyrin star polymer. The nanosystem has a special structure of pomegranate-like unimolecular micelle aggregate with one phycocyanin acceptor in the center and multiple porphyrin donors in the shell. It can inhibit donor self-quenching effectively and display efficient transfer of excitation energy (about 80.1 %) in water. Furthermore, the number of donors contributing to a single acceptor could reach as high as about 179 in this nanosystem.
