PHOTO-LINK · Harnessing the Sun: Structural elucidation of the photoprotective Photosystem II interactome
Horizon Europe — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2022-11-15 → 2024-11-14
- EU contribution
- €211,755
- Participants
- 2
- Scheme
- HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Harnessing the Sun: Structural elucidation of the photoprotective Photosystem II interactome
Oxygenic photosynthesis, the foundation of nearly all life on Earth, converts water and sunlight into chemical energy, sustaining ecosystems and driving primary energy production. Over 3.5 billion years of evolution, the Photosystem II (PSII) enzyme, responsible for water splitting, has remained fundamentally conserved, while its associated regulatory proteins have evolved to enable photosynthetic organisms to thrive across diverse habitats. These dynamic interactions, crucial for light harvesting and photoprotection, underlie the adaptability of photosynthesis and its vital role in energy and food security. Understanding how PSII and its interactome adapt to changing environments is essential for addressing global challenges like climate change, food demand, and renewable energy production. The PHOTO-LINK project investigates the structural and functional adaptations of PSII, focusing on Arabidopsis thaliana (At), a model land plant, and Phaeodactylum tricornutum (Pt), a marine diatom. It aims to: > Achieve comprehensive structural descriptions of Photosystem II components in At and Pt under standard conditions. > Elucidate the dynamic structural changes within the “fast” and “slow” PSII interactomes in response to varying light conditions. > Advance integrative structural proteomics methodologies for application in photosynthesis research. The work’s significance lies in bridging knowledge gaps regarding photosynthetic adaptations and laying a foundation for innovative applications in sustainable agriculture, bioenergy, and environmental research. This aligns with EU priorities such as the Green Deal and Horizon Europe’s sustainability and innovation goals.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
Splitting of water molecules by Photosystem II (PSII) in oxygenic photosynthetic organisms sustains oxygen evolution on Earth, making this complex central for life on this planet. Sunlight is arguably the most variable source of energy in natural environments, with variations in quantity and quality occurring in the range of seconds to hours, and photosynthetic organisms evolved an ensemble of photosynthetic mechanisms to thrive in every ecosystem. Consequently, the ecological success of photosynthesis relies on the interaction of a conserved PSII catalytic core with a plethora of interacting proteins - its interactome - to optimize light harvesting and drive the disassemble/repair cycle of excess light-damaged PSII. The structural association of PSII with its interactome is inevitably transient and therefore recalcitrant to classic approaches for structural determination. PHOTO-LINK will employ a novel multidisciplinary approach that combines structural proteomics, spectroscopy and cryo-electron microscopy (EM) to provide a complete picture of how photosynthetic organisms adapt their PSII interactome to ever-changing environmental conditions. The methodological approach will be developed initially using two ecologically divergent model organisms, the vascular plant Arabidopsis thaliana (At) and marine phytoplanktonic diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum (Pt). The subsequent structural elucidation of the photoprotective mechanisms in the organism of choice will provide cutting-edge scientific knowledge, along with valuable directions for biotechnological improvement of light-use-efficiency in globally relevant crops to increase their productivity (thanks to data acquired in At) and/or to optimise CO2 sequestration and transformation in marine phytoplankton (thanks to data acquired in Pt).
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
Links
- View on CORDIS
- DOI: 10.3030/101066400
- https://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/documents/downloadPublic?documentIds=080166e5145b408b&appId=PPGMS
- https://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/documents/downloadPublic?documentIds=080166e5fef443ca&appId=PPGMS
Data: CORDIS, © European Union