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| Chlorophylle | |
|---|---|
| Name | Chlorophylle |
| Caption | Generalized chlorophyll structure |
| Formula | varies (e.g., C55H72MgN4O5 for chlorophyll a) |
| Molar mass | varies |
| Appearance | green pigment |
Chlorophylle
Chlorophylle is the primary green pigment found in the photosynthetic membranes of plants, algae, and certain bacteria, central to light capture and energy transduction. First characterized in studies associated with Joseph Priestley-era photobiology and refined through work by Friedrich Wöhler and Richard Willstätter, chlorophylle underpins modern understanding developed by laboratories at institutions like Max Planck Society and Harvard University. Its study intersects research at institutions such as the Royal Society, Smithsonian Institution, California Institute of Technology, and industry partners including BASF and DuPont.
Chlorophylle occurs predominantly as multiple molecular species including chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b, and was pivotal to breakthroughs by scientists at University of Cambridge, ETH Zurich, and University of Göttingen. Investigations by Nobel laureates such as Jacques Monod (in regulatory biology contexts), Otto Warburg (on respiration and photosynthesis), and Melvin Calvin (on carbon fixation pathways) framed its biochemical role. Major field studies in ecosystems from the Amazon Rainforest to the Great Barrier Reef have mapped chlorophylle distribution using sensors developed at NASA and analyzed by teams at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The core of chlorophylle is a chlorin macrocycle coordinating a central magnesium ion, structurally related to porphyrins studied in work by Hans Fischer. Common types include chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, chlorophyll c variants, chlorophyll d discovered in studies of cyanobacteria associated with Lake Ashmore-type environments, and bacteriochlorophylls characterized in research at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Structural elucidation drew on techniques honed at Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry and spectroscopic methods advanced at Bell Labs and Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. Derivative forms such as pheophytin and chlorophyllide result from enzymatic dephytylation and magnesium removal, research topics at John Innes Centre and W.M. Keck Foundation-funded labs.
Biosynthetic pathways for chlorophylle originate from glutamate and the tetrapyrrole pathway, with key enzymes elucidated by groups at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California, Berkeley, and Weizmann Institute of Science. Genes encoding enzymes like CHLH, CHLI, and protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase have been characterized in model organisms such as Arabidopsis thaliana, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, and cyanobacterial strains studied at University of Tokyo and University of Helsinki. Regulation of synthesis involves signaling cascades investigated in laboratories at Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research and interactions with photoreceptors like phytochrome and cryptochrome characterized by teams at John Innes Centre and University of Oxford. Catabolic pathways during senescence yield pheophorbide and nonfluorescent chlorophyll catabolites explored in collaborative projects between ETH Zurich and University of Liège.
Chlorophylle absorbs photons in the blue and red regions, transferring excitation energy to reaction centers in photosystems I and II, complexes defined structurally by cryo-EM groups at MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology and crystallography labs at Brookhaven National Laboratory. Energy transfer mechanisms were modeled in theoretical frameworks advanced by researchers at Princeton University and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The Z-scheme of electron transport linking PSII and PSI was characterized through experiments at Argonne National Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and integrated with Calvin cycle biochemistry elucidated by Melvin Calvin at University of California, Berkeley. Artificial photosynthesis initiatives at MIT, Caltech, and Stanford University emulate chlorophylle-mediated light harvesting for solar fuel generation.
Chlorophylle distribution shapes primary productivity patterns measured in the North Atlantic and Southern Ocean by programs like Global Ocean Observing System and analyzed by teams at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Plymouth Marine Laboratory. Evolutionary shifts in chlorophyll types contributed to niche differentiation among cyanobacteria, green algae, and land plants; these shifts are studied in phylogenetics labs at University of Cambridge, University of Edinburgh, and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. Paleobotanical records from the Dorset Coast and Green River Formation link chlorophyll derivatives to ancient biogeochemical cycles investigated by researchers at US Geological Survey and Natural History Museum, London.
Chlorophylle derivatives are used as natural colorants in food industries regulated by agencies such as European Food Safety Authority and U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and in cosmetics developed by corporations like L'Oréal and Unilever. Analytical assays for water quality and algal blooms employ chlorophyll fluorescence sensors developed by Sea-Bird Electronics and satellite instruments from European Space Agency and NOAA. Synthetic analogs inform dye-sensitized solar cells researched at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne and University of Tokyo, while medical investigations at Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins University explore chlorophyll derivatives for photodynamic therapy.
Dietary exposure to chlorophylle and chlorophyllin supplements has been evaluated in clinical studies at Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, and National Institutes of Health for purported deodorizing and antimutagenic effects, with regulatory oversight by European Food Safety Authority and U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Certain chlorophyll degradation products have been studied for their potential phototoxicity in dermatological contexts at Massachusetts General Hospital and University College London. Occupational safety in algal cultivation facilities is addressed in standards from Occupational Safety and Health Administration and International Labour Organization guidance used by industry partners including Cargill and DSM.
Category:Pigments