Alpha-helices direct excitation energy flow in the Fenna Matthews Olson protein.

ABSTRACT: In photosynthesis, light is captured by antenna proteins. These proteins transfer the excitation energy with almost 100% quantum efficiency to the reaction centers, where charge separation takes place. The time scale and pathways of this transfer are controlled by the protein scaffold, which holds the pigments at optimal geometry and tunes their excitation energies (site energies). The detailed understanding of the tuning of site energies by the protein has been an unsolved problem since the first high-resolution crystal structure of a light-harvesting antenna appeared >30 years ago [Fenna RE, Matthews BW (1975) Nature 258:573-577]. Here, we present a combined quantum chemical/electrostatic approach to compute site energies that considers the whole protein in atomic detail and provides the

SUBMITTER: Muh F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2040394 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature