Unifying Light-Induced Processes in Biology: Isomerization in Vision and Energy Transfer in Photosynthesis
Abstract
Light provides a fundamental source of energy that powers a wide range of biophysical processes [1]. In each case, light is incident upon a molecular system and is absorbed, initiating a sequence of subsequent molecular processes. Examples relevant to this project are animal vision, where light absorption triggers molecular isomerization followed by visual transduction leading to nerve signals in the brain, and photoinduced energy transfer, where absorbed energy is transferred to a reaction center to initiate chemical processes. Both scenarios involve light induced transport: in the first case, matter moves, in the second energy moves. Note that in all instances, and as is typical in complex biophysical processes, the nature of the environment, often the surrounding protein architecture, is important to biological function.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 30, 2021
- Accession Number
- AD1155541
Entities
People
- Jennifer P Ogilvie
Organizations
- Board of Regents of the University of Michigan