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Saraceno P, Sardar S, Caferri R, Camargo FVA, Dall'Osto L, D'Andrea C, Bassi R, Cupellini L, Cerullo G, Mennucci B. Probing the Effect of Mutations on Light Harvesting in CP29 by Transient Absorption and First-Principles Simulations. J Phys Chem Lett 2024:6398-6408. [PMID: 38861672 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.4c01040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2024]
Abstract
Natural light harvesting is exceptionally efficient thanks to the local energy funnel created within light-harvesting complexes (LHCs). To understand the design principles underlying energy transport in LHCs, ultrafast spectroscopy is often complemented by mutational studies that introduce perturbations into the excitonic structure of the natural complexes. However, such studies may fall short of identifying all excitation energy transfer (EET) pathways and their changes upon mutation. Here, we show that a synergistic combination of first-principles calculations and ultrafast spectroscopy can give unprecedented insight into the EET pathways occurring within LHCs. We measured the transient absorption spectra of the minor CP29 complex of plants and of two mutants, systematically mapping the kinetic components seen in experiments to the simulated exciton dynamics. With our combined strategy, we show that EET in CP29 is surprisingly robust to the changes in the exciton states induced by mutations, explaining the versatility of plant LHCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Piermarco Saraceno
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Samim Sardar
- Center for Nano Science and Technology @PoliMi, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Rubattino 81, 20134 Milan, Italy
| | - Roberto Caferri
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie, Università di Verona, Strada Le Grazie 15, 37134 Verona, Italy
| | - Franco V A Camargo
- Istituto di Fotonica e Nanotecnologie, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Piazza L. da Vinci 32, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Luca Dall'Osto
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie, Università di Verona, Strada Le Grazie 15, 37134 Verona, Italy
| | - Cosimo D'Andrea
- Center for Nano Science and Technology @PoliMi, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Rubattino 81, 20134 Milan, Italy
- Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza L. da Vinci 32, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Roberto Bassi
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie, Università di Verona, Strada Le Grazie 15, 37134 Verona, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Cupellini
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Giulio Cerullo
- Istituto di Fotonica e Nanotecnologie, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Piazza L. da Vinci 32, 20133 Milano, Italy
- Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza L. da Vinci 32, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Benedetta Mennucci
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
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Bhattacharjee S, Arra S, Daidone I, Pantazis DA. Excitation landscape of the CP43 photosynthetic antenna complex from multiscale simulations. Chem Sci 2024; 15:7269-7284. [PMID: 38756808 PMCID: PMC11095388 DOI: 10.1039/d3sc06714a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2023] [Accepted: 04/07/2024] [Indexed: 05/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Photosystem II (PSII), the principal enzyme of oxygenic photosynthesis, contains two integral light harvesting proteins (CP43 and CP47) that bind chlorophylls and carotenoids. The two intrinsic antennae play crucial roles in excitation energy transfer and photoprotection. CP43 interacts most closely with the reaction center of PSII, specifically with the branch of the reaction center (D1) that is responsible for primary charge separation and electron transfer. Deciphering the function of CP43 requires detailed atomic-level insights into the properties of the embedded pigments. To advance this goal, we employ a range of multiscale computational approaches to determine the site energies and excitonic profile of CP43 chlorophylls, using large all-atom models of a membrane-bound PSII monomer. In addition to time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) used in the context of a quantum-mechanics/molecular-mechanics setup (QM/MM), we present a thorough analysis using the perturbed matrix method (PMM), which enables us to utilize information from long-timescale molecular dynamics simulations of native PSII-complexed CP43. The excited state energetics and excitonic couplings have both similarities and differences compared with previous experimental fits and theoretical calculations. Both static TD-DFT and dynamic PMM results indicate a layered distribution of site energies and reveal specific groups of chlorophylls that have shared contributions to low-energy excitations. Importantly, the contribution to the lowest energy exciton does not arise from the same chlorophylls at each system configuration, but rather changes as a function of conformational dynamics. An unexpected finding is the identification of a low-energy charge-transfer excited state within CP43 that involves a lumenal (C2) and the central (C10) chlorophyll of the complex. The results provide a refined basis for structure-based interpretation of spectroscopic observations and for further deciphering excitation energy transfer in oxygenic photosynthesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sinjini Bhattacharjee
- Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung Kaiser-Wilhelm-Platz 1 45470 Mülheim an der Ruhr Germany
| | - Srilatha Arra
- Department of Physical and Chemical Sciences, University of L'Aquila Via Vetoio (Coppito 1) 67010 L'Aquila Italy
| | - Isabella Daidone
- Department of Physical and Chemical Sciences, University of L'Aquila Via Vetoio (Coppito 1) 67010 L'Aquila Italy
| | - Dimitrios A Pantazis
- Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung Kaiser-Wilhelm-Platz 1 45470 Mülheim an der Ruhr Germany
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Forde A, Maity S, Freixas VM, Fernandez-Alberti S, Neukirch AJ, Kleinekathöfer U, Tretiak S. Stabilization of Charge-Transfer Excited States in Biological Systems: A Computational Focus on the Special Pair in Photosystem II Reaction Centers. J Phys Chem Lett 2024; 15:4142-4150. [PMID: 38593451 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.4c00362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/11/2024]
Abstract
Charge-transfer (CT) excited states play an important role in many biological processes. However, many computational approaches often inadequately address the equilibration effects of nuclear and environmental degrees of freedom on these states. One prominent example of systems in which CT states are of utmost importance is reaction centers (RC) in photosystems. Here we use a multiscale approach combined with time-dependent density functional theory to explore the lowest CT excited state of the special pair PD1-PD2 in the Photosystem II-RC of a cyanobacterium. We find that the nonequilibrium CT excited state resides near the Soret band, making an exciton the lowest-energy excited state. However, accounting for nuclear and state-specific dielectric equilibration along the CT potential energy surface (PES), the CT state PD1--PD2+ stabilizes energetically below the excitonic state. This underscores the crucial role of state-specific solvation in mapping the PES of CT states, as demonstrated in a simplified dimer model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron Forde
- Theoretical Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
- Center for Nonlinear Studies, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
| | - Sayan Maity
- School of Science, Constructor University, Campus Ring 1, 28759 Bremen, Germany
| | - Victor M Freixas
- Departamento de Ciencia y Tecnologiia, Univresidad Nacional de Quilmes/CONICET, B1876BXD Bernal, Argentina
| | | | - Amanda J Neukirch
- Theoretical Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
| | | | - Sergei Tretiak
- Theoretical Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
- Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
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Gelzinis A, Chmeliov J, Tutkus M, Vitulskienė E, Franckevičius M, Büchel C, Robert B, Valkunas L. Fluorescence quenching in aggregates of fucoxanthin-chlorophyll protein complexes: Interplay of fluorescing and dark states. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA. BIOENERGETICS 2024; 1865:149030. [PMID: 38163538 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2023.149030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
Diatoms, a major group of algae, account for about a quarter of the global primary production on Earth. These photosynthetic organisms face significant challenges due to light intensity variations in their underwater habitat. To avoid photodamage, they have developed very efficient non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) mechanisms. These mechanisms originate in their light-harvesting antenna - the fucoxanthin-chlorophyll protein (FCP) complexes. Spectroscopic studies of NPQ in vivo are often hindered by strongly overlapping signals from the photosystems and their antennae. Fortunately, in vitro FCP aggregates constitute a useful model system to study fluorescence (FL) quenching in diatoms. In this work, we present streak-camera FL measurements on FCPa and FCPb complexes, isolated from a centric diatom Cyclotella meneghiniana, and their aggregates. We find that spectra of non-aggregated FCP are dominated by a single fluorescing species, but the FL spectra of FCP aggregates additionally contain contributions from a redshifted emissive state. We relate this red state to a charge transfer state between chlorophyll c and chlorophyll a molecules. The FL quenching, on the other hand, is due to an additional dark state that involves incoherent energy transfer to the fucoxanthin carotenoids. Overall, the global picture of energy transfer and quenching in FCP aggregates is very similar to that of major light-harvesting complexes in higher plants (LHCII), but microscopic details between FCPs and LHCIIs differ significantly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrius Gelzinis
- Department of Molecular Compound Physics, Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; Institute of Chemical Physics, Faculty of Physics, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio Ave. 9-III, 10222 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Jevgenij Chmeliov
- Department of Molecular Compound Physics, Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; Institute of Chemical Physics, Faculty of Physics, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio Ave. 9-III, 10222 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Marijonas Tutkus
- Department of Molecular Compound Physics, Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; Institute of Biotechnology, Life Sciences Center, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio Ave. 7, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Ernesta Vitulskienė
- Department of Molecular Compound Physics, Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Marius Franckevičius
- Department of Molecular Compound Physics, Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Claudia Büchel
- Institute of Molecular Biosciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, Max-von-Laue Straße 9, 60438 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Bruno Robert
- Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Leonas Valkunas
- Department of Molecular Compound Physics, Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Saulėtekio Ave. 3, 10257 Vilnius, Lithuania; Institute of Chemical Physics, Faculty of Physics, Vilnius University, Saulėtekio Ave. 9-III, 10222 Vilnius, Lithuania.
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Elias E, Brache K, Schäfers J, Croce R. Coloring Outside the Lines: Exploiting Pigment-Protein Synergy for Far-Red Absorption in Plant Light-Harvesting Complexes. J Am Chem Soc 2024; 146:3508-3520. [PMID: 38286009 PMCID: PMC10859958 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c13373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2023] [Revised: 01/11/2024] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 01/31/2024]
Abstract
Plants are designed to utilize visible light for photosynthesis. Expanding this light absorption toward the far-red could boost growth in low-light conditions and potentially increase crop productivity in dense canopies. A promising strategy is broadening the absorption of antenna complexes to the far-red. In this study, we investigated the capacity of the photosystem I antenna protein Lhca4 to incorporate far-red absorbing chlorophylls d and f and optimize their spectra. We demonstrate that these pigments can successfully bind to Lhca4, with the protein environment further red-shifting the chlorophyll d absorption, markedly extending the absorption range of this complex above 750 nm. Notably, chlorophyll d substitutes the canonical chlorophyll a red-forms, resulting in the most red-shifted emission observed in a plant light-harvesting complex. Using ultrafast spectroscopy, we show that the introduction of these novel chlorophylls does not interfere with the excited state decay or the energy equilibration processes within the complex. The results demonstrate the feasibility of engineering plant antennae to absorb deeper into the far-red region while preserving their functional and structural integrity, paving the way for innovative strategies to enhance photosynthesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eduard Elias
- Department of Physics and
Astronomy and Institute for Lasers, Life and Biophotonics, Faculty
of Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, de Boelelaan 1081, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Katrin Brache
- Department of Physics and
Astronomy and Institute for Lasers, Life and Biophotonics, Faculty
of Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, de Boelelaan 1081, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Judith Schäfers
- Department of Physics and
Astronomy and Institute for Lasers, Life and Biophotonics, Faculty
of Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, de Boelelaan 1081, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Roberta Croce
- Department of Physics and
Astronomy and Institute for Lasers, Life and Biophotonics, Faculty
of Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, de Boelelaan 1081, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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