Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Hong Kong Branch of Chinese National Engineering Research Center for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, Division of Life Science and Institute of Advanced Study, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China.
Mater Horiz. 2021 May 1;8(5):1433-1438. doi: 10.1039/d1mh00012h. Epub 2021 Apr 26.
Photosynthesis is regarded as the foundation for sustaining life on our planet. Light-harvesting is the initial step that activates the subsequent photochemical reactions. In the photosystems, chloroplast is the basic light-driven metabolic factory of higher plant cells. However, there is an incomplete match between the solar radiation spectrum and absorption profile of chloroplasts. It is hard for the photosynthetic pigments to fully utilize the sunlight energy. Here, we designed two new aggregation-induced emission (AIE) molecules with activated alkyl groups (TPE-PPO and TPA-TPO). Via a facile metal-free "Click" reaction, we realized the substantial manipulation of live chloroplasts with the AIE luminogens (AIEgens). Owing to the matched photophysical properties, the AIEgens could harvest harmful ultraviolet radiation (HUVR) and photosynthetically inefficient radiation (PIR), and further convert them into photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) for chloroplast absorption. As a result, the conjugated AIEgen-chloroplast exhibited better capability of water splitting and electron separation. It promoted the generation of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is an important product of photosynthesis. This work provides an effective strategy for improving plant photosynthesis.
光合作用被认为是维持我们星球生命的基础。光捕获是激活后续光化学反应的初始步骤。在光合作用系统中,叶绿体是高等植物细胞基本的光驱动代谢工厂。然而,太阳辐射光谱和叶绿体的吸收特性之间存在不完全匹配。光合色素很难充分利用太阳光能。在这里,我们设计了两个具有激活烷基的新型聚集诱导发射(AIE)分子(TPE-PPO 和 TPA-TPO)。通过简便的无金属“点击”反应,我们用 AIE 发光体(AIEgens)实现了对活叶绿体的实质性操作。由于匹配的光物理性质,AIEgens 可以收集有害的紫外线辐射(HUVR)和光合作用低效辐射(PIR),并进一步将它们转化为叶绿体吸收的光合作用有效辐射(PAR)。结果,共轭 AIEgen-叶绿体表现出更好的水分解和电子分离能力。它促进了三磷酸腺苷(ATP)的生成,这是光合作用的重要产物。这项工作为提高植物光合作用提供了一种有效的策略。