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My journey to photosynthesis

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Abstract

I provide here both my personal and scientific autobiography. After giving a background and summary of most of my research, I present information on my parents, my childhood, schooling, university education, and postdoctoral research, all in Australia. This is followed by a presentation of my life and research in Cambridge, UK and then at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), in Australia, since 1955, where most of my research was done, especially on photosynthesis which included the following areas: Purification of a protochlorophyllide-protein complex; separation of the photochemical systems of photosynthesis; development of photochemical activity in photosynthesis; protein synthesis in plants; comparative photosynthesis of sun and shade plants; role of chlorophyll b in photosynthesis; photochemical properties of C4 plants; molecular interaction of thylakoid membranes; electron transport and ATP formation; and solar energy conversion in photosynthesis. In addition to research on the basics and applications of photosynthesis, I also mention at the end my service as a member of the executive of CSIRO.

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Fig. 1

Source: Boardman family archives

Fig. 2

Source: Photo provided by Fred Chow

Fig. 3

Source: Keith Boardman

Fig. 4

Source: Keith Boardman

Fig. 5

References

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Acknowledgements

I wish to acknowledge the great collaborators I had at CSIRO, Canberra, particularly Jan Anderson and John Thorne. I thank Wah (Fred) Chow for his help with this manuscript. My sincere thanks to Govindjee for reading an early version of the manuscript and for his valuable suggestions throughout the preparation of this manuscript. Further, I am thankful to Robert (Bob) Blankenship for his editorial suggestions that has led to an improvement in my focus on photosynthesis research.

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  1. 6 Somers Crescent Forrest, Canberra, ACT, 2603, Australia

    N. Keith Boardman

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KB prepared the manuscript in its entirety.

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This manuscript was invited by Govindjee many years ago and has been edited by him several times before its submission for publication.

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Boardman, N.K. My journey to photosynthesis. Photosynth Res 157, 159–170 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11120-023-01021-1

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