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SUMMARY:Multi-timescale fluorescence correlation spectroscopy of the main 
 plant light-harvesting complex during aggregation stages
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20260326T100000Z
DTEND;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20260326T102000Z
DTSTAMP;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20260425T232449Z
UID:indico-contribution-10322@events.saip.org.za
DESCRIPTION:Speakers: Francois Conradie ()\nLight-Harvesting Complex II (L
 HCII) is the most abundant photosynthetic membrane pigment-protein complex
  in higher plants\, enabling extremely efficient solar energy harvesting. 
 Their light-harvesting function is finely controlled by processes that swi
 tch the complexes into a photoprotective state. LHCII aggregates\, that fe
 ature strong quenching of excitation light\, are often believed to be enha
 nce a plant’s photoprotective capability. Finding new ways to study thes
 e aggregates can lead to important insights into the fundamental mechanism
 s by which plants protect themselves against high sunlight intensities\, w
 hich could\, for example\, inform efforts to improve crop yields in a chan
 ging climate. In our project\, we have developed techniques that combine f
 luorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) and time-correlated single-phot
 on counting (TCSPC). The aggregation of LHCII was investigated at increasi
 ng levels by step-wise removal of detergent from low-concentration purifie
 d samples. Applying pulse-interleaved excitation (PIE) enabled advanced FC
 S to accurately measure translational and estimated rotational diffusion c
 oefficients\, yielding the hydrodynamic radii of LHCII during aggregation.
  Furthermore\, extending measurement times and using both pulsed and conti
 nuous excitation unveiled photophysics from microseconds down to picosecon
 d timescales. The results show a rich combination of dimensional informati
 on and excitation dynamics in these photosynthetic aggregates\, highlighti
 ng the importance of singlet-triplet annihilation when studying quenching 
 in LHCII.\n\nhttps://events.saip.org.za/event/272/contributions/10322/
LOCATION:
URL:https://events.saip.org.za/event/272/contributions/10322/
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