Photosynthesis is the process by which plants, algae and certain species of bacteria transform solar energy into chemical energy in the form of organic molecules. In fact, all life on the planet ultimately depends on photosynthetic energy conversion. The book provides a compressive and state-of-the-art of very recent progress on photosynthesis research. The topics span from atom to intact plants, from femtosecond reactions to season long production, from physics to agronomy. The book is to offer advanced undergraduate students, graduate students, and research specialists the most recent advances in the all aspects of photosynthesis research. The book is intended to offer researchers detailed information on the most recent advances in all aspects of photosynthesis research. Tingyun Kuang is a professor at Institute of Botany, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and the Academician of CAS; Congming Lu is a professor at Institute of Botany, CAS; Lixin Zhang is a professor at Institute of Botany, CAS and the Chief Scientist in the National Basic Research Program of China on photosynthesis.
As the largest scale chemical reaction, photosynthesis supplies all of the organic carbon and oxygen for life on Earth. It is estimated that the photosynthetic activity of microorganisms is responsible for more than 50% of the primary production of molecular oxygen on Earth. This book highlights recent breakthroughs in the multidisciplinary areas of microbial photosynthesis, presenting the latest developments in various areas of microbial photosynthesis research, from bacteria to eukaryotic algae, and from theoretical biology to structural biology and biophysics. Furthermore, the book discusses advances in photosynthetic chassis, such as in the context of metabolic engineering and green chemical production. Featuring contributions by leading authorities in photosynthesis research, the book is a valuable resource for graduate students and researchers in the field, especially those studying biological evolution and the origin of life.
Photosynthesis has been an important field of research for more than a century, but the present concerns about energy, environment and climate have greatly intensified interest in and research on this topic. Research has progressed rapidly in recent years, and this book is an interesting read for an audience who is concerned with various ways of harnessing solar energy.Our understanding of photosynthesis can now be said to have reached encyclopedic dimensions. There have been, in the past, many good books at various levels. Our book is expected to fulfill the needs of advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students in branches of biology, biochemistry, biophysics, and bioengineering because photosynthesis is the basis of future advances in producing more food, more biomass, more fuel, and new chemicals for our expanding global human population. Further, the basics of photosynthesis are and will be used not only for the above, but in artificial photosynthesis, an important emerging field where chemists, researchers and engineers of solar energy systems will play a major role.
To address the environmental, socioeconomic, and geopolitical issues associated with increasing global human energy consumption, technologies for utilizing renewable carbon-free or carbon-neutral energy sources must be identified and developed. Among renewable sources, solar energy is quite promising as it alone is sufficient to meet global human demands well into the foreseeable future. However, it is diffuse and diurnal. Thus effective strategies must be developed for its capture, conversion and storage. In this context, photosynthesis provides a paradigm for large-scale deployment. Photosynthesis occurs in plants, algae, and cyanobacteria and has evolved over 3 billion years. The process of photosynthesis currently produces more than 100 billion tons of dry biomass annually, which equates to a global energy storage rate of ~100 TW. Recently, detailed structural information on the natural photosynthetic systems has been acquired at the molecular level, providing a foundation for comprehensive functional studies of the photosynthetic process. Likewise, sophisticated spectroscopic techniques have revealed important mechanistic details. Such accomplishments have made it possible for scientists and engineers to construct artificial systems for solar energy transduction that are inspired by their biological counterparts. The book contains articles written by experts and world leaders in their respective fields and summarizes the exciting breakthroughs toward understanding the structures and mechanisms of the photosynthetic apparatus as well as efforts toward developing revolutionary new energy conversion technologies. The topics/chapters will be organized in terms of the natural sequence of events occurring in the process of photosynthesis, while keeping a higher-order organization of structure and mechanism as well as the notion that biology can inspire human technologies. For example, the topic of light harvesting, will be followed by charge separation at reaction centers, followed by charge stabilization, followed by chemical reactions, followed by protection mechanisms, followed by other more specialized topics and finally ending with artificial systems and looking forward. As shown in the table of contents (TOC), the book includes and integrates topics on the structures and mechanisms of photosynthesis, and provides relevant information on applications to bioenergy and solar energy transduction.
Ultraviolet-B (UV-B) is electromagnetic radiation coming from the sun, with a medium wavelength which is mostly absorbed by the ozone layer. The biological effects of UV-B are greater than simple heating effects, and many practical applications of UV-B radiation derive from its interactions with organic molecules. It is considered particularly harmful to the environment and living things, but what have scientific studies actually shown? UV-B Radiation: From Environmental Stressor to Regulator of Plant Growth presents a comprehensive overview of the origins, current state, and future horizons of scientific research on ultraviolet-B radiation and its perception in plants. Chapters explore all facets of UV-B research, including the basics of how UV-B's shorter wavelength radiation from the sun reaches the Earth's surface, along with its impact on the environment's biotic components and on human biological systems. Chapters also address the dramatic shift in UV-B research in recent years, reflecting emerging technologies, showing how historic research which focused exclusively on the harmful environmental effects of UV-B radiation has now given way to studies on potential benefits to humans. Topics include: UV-B and its climatology UV-B and terrestrial ecosystems Plant responses to UV-B stress UB- B avoidance mechanisms UV-B and production of secondary metabolites Discovery of UVR8 Timely and important, UV-B Radiation: From Environmental Stressor to Regulator of Plant Growth is an invaluable resource for environmentalists, researchers and students who are into the state-of-the-art research being done on exposure to UV-B radiation.
Today's planet faces several critical problems such as resource depletion, environmental destruction, and climate change that affect all areas of life as we know it. Figuring out how to address these issues and prioritizing Earth’s health has been at the forefront of study as it is a key issue that affects us all. One element that requires further investigation is algae regarding its potential for creating a more sustainable future across the food, energy, and environmental sectors. The Handbook of Research on Algae as a Sustainable Solution for Food, Energy, and the Environment provides insight into the biotechnological and biorefinery aspects of algae together with their unique applications in the agriculture and pharmaceutical industry. Furthermore, this book considers the biological and biotechnological processes happening in the cultivation and harvesting of algae, DNA sequencing, and genomics of algae. Moreover, it examines the bio-remediation aspects of algae and its utilization to produce biofuels, methane, hydrogen, and other useful renewable sources of energy, thereby contributing to environmental sustainability. Covering topics such as cell biology and food science, this reference work is ideal for academicians, researchers, industry professionals, scholars, practitioners, instructors, and students.
The Fourth Edition of the Handbook of Photosynthesis offers a unique and comprehensive collection of topics in the field of photosynthesis, serving as an invaluable resource in this field. With contributions from 95 scientists and experts from over 20 countries, this volume has been divided into 13 parts, each serving independently to facilitate the understanding of the material. FEATURES Presents comprehensive information on photosynthesis under normal and environmental stress conditions Covers artificial photosynthesis and its future-related issues Contains 25 new chapters and 18 extensively revised and expanded chapters Includes three new sections: Influence of Nanoparticles on Photosynthesis; Protection of Photosynthesis System and Stress Alleviation Strategies by Photosynthates Manipulations and Photosynthesis Efficiency in Plants under Multiple Abiotic and Biotic Stressors; and Artificial Photosynthesis and Its Future Contains numerous tables, figures, illustrations, and case studies to facilitate the comprehension of the material as well as thousands of index words A primary resource in its field, Handbook of Photosynthesis, Fourth Edition, provides a comprehensive resource for researchers, academics, and for university courses, with the information as a valuable source to plan, implement, and evaluate strategies for dealing with photosynthesis issues.
Recounting the compelling story of a scientific discovery that took more than a century to complete, this trail-blazing monograph focuses on methodological issues and is the first to delve into this subject. This book charts how the biochemical and biophysical mechanisms of photosynthesis were teased out by succeeding generations of scientists, and the author highlights the reconstruction of the heuristics of modelling the mechanism—analyzed at both individual and collective levels. Photosynthesis makes for an instructive example. The first tentative ideas were developed by organic chemists around 1840, while by 1960 an elaborate proposal at a molecular level, for both light and dark reactions, was established. The latter is still assumed to be basically correct today. The author makes a persuasive case for a historically informed philosophy of science, especially regarding methodology, and advocates a history of science whose narrative deploys philosophical approaches and categories. She shows how scientists’ attempts to formulate, justify, modify, confirm or criticize their models are best interpreted as series of coordinated research actions, dependent on a network of super- and subordinated epistemic goals, and guided by recurrent heuristic strategies. With dedicated chapters on key figures such as Otto Warburg, who borrowed epistemic fundamentals from other disciplines to facilitate his own work on photosynthesis, and on more general topics relating to the development of the field after Warburg, this new work is both a philosophical reflection on the nature of scientific enquiry and a detailed history of the processes behind one of science’s most important discoveries.
This book is an inclusive collection of topics on research on UVB for its impact on plants with a focus on its use as an emerging technology for crop growth and protection. This book covers role of UV-B on biological systems, and its transformation from generic stressor to specific regulator. It also explores the past research in UVB studies and the changing mind-sets regarding UV-B in recent time with respect to the plant growth. It also explores the discovery of specific UV-B photoreceptor, UVR8 and UVR8 mediated plants responses. This book is of interest to teachers, researchers, agriculture scientists and plant physiologists. Also the book serves as additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of agriculture, forestry, ecology, soil science, and environmental sciences
In the modern world, to meet increasing energy demands we need to develop new technologies allowing us to use eco-friendly carbon-neutral energy sources. Solar energy as the most promising renewable source could be the way to solve that problem, but it is variable depending on day time and season. From this side, the understanding of photosynthesis process could be of significant help for us to develop effective strategies of solar energy capturing, conversion, and storage. Plants, algae, and cyanobacteria perform photosynthesis, annually producing around 100 billion tons of dry biomass. Presently, the detailed studies of photosynthetic system structure make functional investigations of the photosynthetic process available, allowing scientists to construct artificial systems for solar energy transduction. This book summarizes exciting achievements in understanding of photosynthetic structures and mechanisms of this process made by world leaders in photosynthesis field, and contains information about modern ideas in development of revolutionary new technologies of energy conversion. Organized according to the natural sequence of events occurring during photosynthesis, the book includes information of both photosynthetic structures and mechanisms and its applications in bioenergetics issues.
