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Related Concept Videos

Photosystem II01:22

Photosystem II

71.9K
The multi-protein complex photosystem II (PS II) harvests photons and transfers their energy through its bound pigments to its reaction center, and ultimately to photosystem I (PSI) through the electron transport chain. The pigments responsible for caputirng the light energy in photosystems include chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and carotenoids.
The pigment molecules are arranged across  two photosystem domains — the antenna complex and the reaction center. The main aim of the pigment...
71.9K
Photosystems01:32

Photosystems

4.9K
Photosystems are multiprotein complexes that form the functional units of photosynthesis in plants, algae, and cyanobacteria. They are found embedded in the membrane of tiny sac-like structures called thylakoids placed inside the chloroplast.
Functioning of Photosystems
Photosystems contain many pigment molecules, such as chlorophylls and carotenoids, arranged in a particular organization across two domains — the antenna complex and the reaction center. The main aim of the pigment...
4.9K
Photosystem I01:27

Photosystem I

63.8K
Although structurally similar to photosystem II (PSII), photosystem I (PSI) is has a different electron supplier and electron acceptor.
Both these photosystems work in concert. An excited electron from PSII is relayed to PSI via an electron transport chain in the thylakoid membrane of the chloroplast, which is comprised of the carrier molecule plastoquinone, the dual-protein cytochrome complex, and plastocyanin. As electrons move between PSII and PSI, they lose energy and must be re-energized...
63.8K
Oxygenic Photosynthesis01:26

Oxygenic Photosynthesis

56
Oxygenic photosynthesis is a fundamental process in which light energy is harnessed to drive the oxidation of water, leading to the production of molecular oxygen (O₂), adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH). This process is essential for sustaining aerobic life on Earth and is primarily carried out by cyanobacteria, algae, and plants. The core of oxygenic photosynthesis lies in the thylakoid membranes, where chlorophyll pigments facilitate...
56
The Z-Scheme of Electron Transport in Photosynthesis01:34

The Z-Scheme of Electron Transport in Photosynthesis

10.4K
The light reactions of photosynthesis assume a linear flow of electrons from water to NADP+. During this process, light energy drives the splitting of water molecules to produce oxygen. However, oxidation of water molecules is a thermodynamically unfavorable reaction and requires a strong oxidizing agent. This is accomplished by the first product of light reactions: oxidized P680 (or P680+), the most powerful oxidizing agent known in biology. The oxidized P680 that acquires an electron from the...
10.4K
The Photochemical Reaction Center01:29

The Photochemical Reaction Center

4.2K
Reaction centers are pigment-protein complexes that initiate energy conversion from photons to chemical entities. Therefore, photochemical reaction center is a more appropriate term that describes these complexes. The Nobel laureates Robert Emerson and William Arnold provided the first experimental evidence of photochemical reaction centers by demonstrating the participation of nearly 2,500 chlorophyll molecules for the release of just one molecule of oxygen. Despite thousands of photosynthetic...
4.2K

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A reexamination of the Kitajima and Butler (1975) model for relating chlorophyll <i>a</i> fluorescence to photochemistry.

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The structure of intact and active Photosystem II from Arabidopsis thaliana at 2.44 Å resolution.

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Structural basis of the promiscuity of the unusual Fe(II) and 2-oxoglutarate dependent human aspartate/asparagine-β-hydroxylase.

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Why the electron chooses one of two symmetry-related paths in the type II bacterial photosynthetic reaction centers.

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A thank you note for Julian Eaton-Rye, the wonderful staff at <i>Photosynthetica</i>, and all the scientists who participated in the 2018 special issue.

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 9, 2025

Purification of Active Photosystem I-Light Harvesting Complex I from Plant Tissues
07:10

Purification of Active Photosystem I-Light Harvesting Complex I from Plant Tissues

Published on: February 3, 2023

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Solar energy conversion by photosystem II: principles and structures.

Dmitry Shevela1, Jan F Kern2, Govindjee Govindjee3

  • 1Department of Chemistry, Chemical Biological Centre, Umeå University, 90187, Umeå, Sweden. dmitry.shevela@umu.se.

Photosynthesis Research
|February 24, 2023
PubMed
Summary

Photosystem II (PSII) drives water oxidation, sustaining life and inspiring synthetic catalysts for renewable energy. Decades of research reveal its molecular structures and energy conversion principles, with ongoing efforts to fully elucidate biological water oxidation mechanisms.

Keywords:
Educational reviewFunction of Photosystem IIMechanism of water oxidationOxygen evolutionPhotosynthesisPrimary photochemistry

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Studying the Supramolecular Organization of Photosynthetic Membranes within Freeze-fractured Leaf Tissues by Cryo-scanning Electron Microscopy
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Integrating a Triplet-triplet Annihilation Up-conversion System to Enhance Dye-sensitized Solar Cell Response to Sub-bandgap Light
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Area of Science:

  • Biophysics
  • Biochemistry
  • Renewable Energy

Background:

  • Photosynthetic water oxidation by Photosystem II (PSII) is vital for life and a model for artificial catalysts.
  • Research has advanced significantly, yielding high-resolution structures of PSII states.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To summarize current knowledge of PSII's structure and function.
  • To highlight principles of light energy to chemical energy conversion in PSII.
  • To discuss remaining questions in biological water oxidation.

Main Methods:

  • Biophysical analysis
  • Computational modeling
  • Structural biology (X-ray crystallography)

Main Results:

  • High-resolution crystal structures of dark-stable, intermediate, and transient PSII states are available.
  • Understanding of molecular structures enabling PSII reactions has improved.
  • Progress in describing the principles of energy conversion.

Conclusions:

  • PSII's structure-function relationship is increasingly understood.
  • A molecular-level pathway for biological water oxidation is proposed.
  • Further research is needed to address remaining mechanistic questions.