Photophosphorylation is the light powered production of energy-rich adenosine triphosphate (ATP) during photosynthesis. ATP is formed by phosphorylation of adenosine diphosphate (ADP) in a reaction that stores energy in the bond linking ADP with an...

Life requires a continuous input of energy. On Earth, the main source of energy is sunlight, which is transformed by photosynthesis into a form of chemical energy that can be used by photosynthetic and nonphotosynthetic organisms alike. Photosynthesis...

The initial stage of the photosynthetic system is the light-dependent reaction, which converts solar energy into chemical energy. The light dependent reaction produces oxygen gas and converts ADP and NADP+ into the energy carriers ATP and...

Cryptochromes are photolyase-like blue/UV-A light receptors that regulate various light responses in animals and plants. Arabidopsis cryptochrome 1 (cryl) is the major photoreceptor mediating blue light inhibition of hypocotyl elongation. The initial photochemistry underlying cryptochrome function and regulation remain poorly understood. We report here...

In higher plants, etioplast to chloroplast differentiation is characterized by dramatic ultrastructural changes of the plastid and a concomitant increase in chlorophylls and carotenoids. Whereas the formation and function of carotenes and their oxygenated derivatives, the xanthophylls, have been well studied, little is known...