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A viewpoint: Why chlorophyll a?

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Abstract

Chlorophyll a (Chl a) serves a dual role in oxygenic photosynthesis: in light harvesting as well as in converting energy of absorbed photons to chemical energy. No other Chl is as omnipresent in oxygenic photosynthesis as is Chl a, and this is particularly true if we include Chl a 2, (=[8-vinyl]-Chl a), which occurs in Prochlorococcus, as a type of Chl a. One exception to this near universal pattern is Chl d, which is found in some cyanobacteria that live in filtered light that is enriched in wavelengths >700 nm. They trap the long wavelength electronic excitation, and convert it into chemical energy. In this Viewpoint, we have traced the possible reasons for the near ubiquity of Chl a for its use in the primary photochemistry of Photosystem II (PS II) that leads to water oxidation and of Photosystem I (PS I) that leads to ferredoxin reduction. Chl a appears to be unique and irreplaceable, particularly if global scale oxygenic photosynthesis is considered. Its uniqueness is determined by its physicochemical properties, but there is more. Other contributing factors include specially tailored protein environments, and functional compatibility with neighboring electron transporting cofactors. Thus, the same molecule, Chl a in vivo, is capable of generating a radical cation at +1 V or higher (in PS II), a radical anion at −1 V or lower (in PS I), or of being completely redox silent (in antenna holochromes).

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Notes

  1. The calculation of 700 nm was based on, among others, the following assumptions and approximations: (1) The sunlight spectrum was approximated as a Planck 6000 K blackbody spectrum, modified by a factor depending on the solar system geometry. (2) The shape of the long-wavelength band of the photosynthetic pigment was approximated by a Gaussian function. (3) The photosynthetic system was considered to be at 300 K. (4) The maximum chemical potential that can be extracted from the photons was accepted as described by Ross and Calvin (1967). (5) A limiting value for the oscillator strength can be accommodated within a certain volume. (6) The maximum extractable power (energy per time) is the product of chemical potential achieved by the photon absorption and the rate of photon absorption. For details, see Björn (1976); and for basics, see Knox (1969).

Abbreviations

Chl:

Chlorophyll

Pheo:

Pheophytin

PS:

Photosystem

RC:

Reaction center

TMH:

Transmembrane helix

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Acknowledgments

We thank Jan Kern for Figure 6 and Table 2 and Tony Crofts for discussion. We also thank Rajni Govindjee and Thomas G. Ebrey for their suggestions to improve this viewpoint, in particular on the question of the color of plants. Blankenship thankfully acknowledges support from the Exobiology program from NASA (National Aeronautics Space Administration); and Govindjee thanks Head of the Department of Plant Biology, at the University of Illinois, for support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cell and Organism Biology, Lund University, 22362, Lund, Sweden

    Lars Olof Björn

  2. National Center of Scientific Research Demokritos, Institute of Biology, 15310, Athens, Greece

    George C. Papageorgiou

  3. Departments of Biology and Chemistry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA

    Robert E. Blankenship

  4. Department of Plant Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 265 Morrill Hall, 505 South Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801-3707, USA

    Govindjee

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  1. Lars Olof Björn
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  2. George C. Papageorgiou
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  3. Robert E. Blankenship
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  4. Govindjee
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Correspondence to Govindjee.

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Björn, L.O., Papageorgiou, G.C., Blankenship, R.E. et al. A viewpoint: Why chlorophyll a?. Photosynth Res 99, 85–98 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11120-008-9395-x

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