A step toward artificial photosynthesis: Scientists recreate light-harvesting supramolecules
CTV
Scientists in Japan may have unlocked the key to recreating how plants perform photosynthesis, according to a new study, potentially paving the way for new ways to harvest solar energy.
Scientists in Japan may have unlocked the key to recreating how plants perform photosynthesis, according to a new study, potentially paving the way for new ways to harvest solar energy.
Plants and some bacteria are able to perform photosynthesis—transforming light from the sun into chemical energy—using light-harvesting supramolecules. But while these complex supramolecules have been studied before, humans haven’t been able to artificially recreate them.
Until now, scientists say.
A paper published in the peer-reviewed journal Chemical Communications last week outlines how researchers were able to synthesize and study the formation of light-harvesting supramolecules, which they believe could be pivotal in future solar technology.
A supramolecule, or supermolecule, is an entity created by two or more molecules being held together in a non-covalent bond, the most well-known example being the double helix structure of DNA.
The recreation of light-harvesting supramolecules has eluded scientists because of how complex they are. They consist of numerous pigments, such as chlorophyll, arranged in a specific pattern that changes depending on the species, ranging from spiral structures that morph into large tubes in green photosynthetic bacteria to ring-shaped stacks in purple photosynthetic bacteria.
It is these ring-shaped structures that researchers focused on in the new study. By mixing chemicals and proteins in an organic solvent, researchers discovered how to trigger the substances to self-assemble into the ring-shaped supramolecule.