Researchers ID chlorophyll-regulating gene
...production of protochlorophyll, a precursor of the chlorophyll used by plants to convert the sun's energy into fo...edlings must quickly convert protochlorophyll into chlorophyll once they are exposed to light for the first time. "It's a delicate balancing act," said Peter Qua...Green, leafy spinach may soon power cellphones and laptops
...s the chemical reaction that assembles the spinach chlorophyll Photosystem I complexes. The researchers then evaporate a soft organic semiconductor that prevents electrical shorts and protects the protein complexes from the layer of metal that completes the sandwich. The researchers shone laser light on the de...Envisat concludes a busy second year in orbit
...ERIS is an ocean colour sensor optimised to detect chlorophyll pigments in the water an indication of the presence of microscopic organisms called phytoplankton. In certain conditions the growth of these organisms 'blooms' out of control. Interest in bloom tracking goes beyond the purely scientific, because so...Endurance of plants under quartz rocks possible model for life on early Earth, Mars
...arbon dioxide through the action of light on green chlorophyll molecules. The algae's demonstration of high temperature resilience presented a paradox, because chlorophyll molecules themselves normally begin to degrade at about 167 degrees, according to Schlesinger, who i...Nutrient-poor oceans generate their food 'hot spots'
...ccumulation of floating organic particles and not chlorophyll by-products from the biological activity of the e...ientists revealed unusually high concentrations of chlorophyll --the green pigment carried by phytoplankton-- in these unfertile areas. These accumulations were as...Over land, sea and air, users give MERIS high marks
...tection of five different algae classes. The total chlorophyll concentration measured using this fluorometer was successfully correlated with MERIS data." "The project will continue until the beginning of 2004, as a first step. For the near future we also hope to make use of other Envisat instruments to simulta...Antarctic penguins thrive in ocean 'oases'
...Radiometer (AVHRR) provided weekly measurements of chlorophyll and temperature that were used in a computer model to estimate phytoplankton productivity. The researchers found, taken together, the Ross Sea, Ronne Ice Shelf, Prydz Bay, and Amundsen Sea polynyas were responsible for more than 75 percent of total p...Huge iceberg wreaks havoc on Antarctic marine ecosystem, study finds
... grow through the process of photosynthesis, using chlorophyll to convert sunlight into food. But unusually high ...that the Ross Sea contained only a fraction of the chlorophyll usually seen during those months. "Phytoplankton blooms in the region were diminished dramatically,...Huge Antarctic iceberg makes a big splash on sea life
...ken of Stanford University, Stanford, Calif., used chlorophyll data from NASA's Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS). The instrument, on the OrbView-2 satellite, also known as SeaStar, was used to locate and quantify the effects of C-19 on phytoplankton. The researchers were able to pinpoint iceberg p...Improving fertilizer efficiency
... in 2000 and 2001. Based on spectroradiometer and chlorophyll meter readings, the team applied 30 pounds per acre of nitrogen in-season to their plots when indicated at early squaring, early bloom and peak bloom. In 2000, they applied 30 to 90 pounds per acre less nitrogen than a soil-test recommendation of 12...Designing a better catalyst for 'artificial photosynthesis'
...ter to carbohydrates and oxygen in the presence of chlorophyll and sunlight. Such "artificial photosynthesis" cou...ry. "It's very complicated chemistry." Nature uses chlorophyll as a light absorber and electron-transfer agent. However, chlorophyll does not directly react with C......rt of many biomolecules and is the color center of chlorophyll and hemoglobin. The largest molecule to exhibit interference is the fluorofullerene C60F48. Experiments showed that the interference happens exactly as predicted by quantum mechanics, despite the molecules consisting of 78 and 108 atoms each. Journal...From studies of a rare human mutation to new approaches to herbicides or antibiotics
...ans. Important roles for PBGS include formation of chlorophyll in plants and the heme component of hemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen in the blood. A September 1999 report of a routine screen of newborn infants for metabolic defects identified a new mutation in PBGS, termed F12L, that causes the enzyme...Passing its global sight test leaves MERIS ready for work
...ophysical parameters such as oceanic phytoplankton chlorophyll concentration, cloud-top pressure or terrestrial v...n of individually-microscopic phytoplankton, whose chlorophyll pigments MERIS was designed to see from space. "The phytoplankton blooms were indirectly visible to...Maine chemist wins national award for research and mentoring
...y. "It turns out that carotenoids catch light that chlorophyll misses and then pass along their energy to chlorophyll to increase the efficiency of photosynthesis," he explained. With their attractive colors and import......acteria, a large and varied group of bacteria with chlorophyll that carry out photosynthesis in the presence of light and air with concomitant production of oxygen? Was it a reduction in carbon-dioxide levels? Geochemist David Schwartzman of Howard University and Ken Caldeira of the Climate and Carbon Cycle Gro...Tourists, soothsayers & scientists try to predict peak Fall foliage color
...s and less daylight trigger the breakdown of green chlorophyll from leaves to reveal the yellow that exist hidden beneath all summer. "Then the leaves can also produce red. But why would a tree make red in a leaf that's about to die?" asks Schaberg. "That's one of the fundamental questions that we seek to answer...Satellites see big changes since 1980s in key element of ocean's food chain
...atellite measurements with surface observations of chlorophyll from ocean buoys and research vessels over corresp...st time that we are really talking about the ocean chlorophyll and showing that the ocean's biology is changing, possibly as a result of climate change," said Conk...Clues to the evolution of photosynthesis
... cytoplasmic membrane. Inside the chlorosomes, the chlorophyll and carotenoid molecules that capture light differ from the molecules that other species use to perform photosynthesis. Also, green-sulfur bacteria carry out photosynthesis in the absence of oxygen and do not produce oxygen as a byproduct as plants d...Argonne chemist wins national award for studies of plant energy
...he said. Light is absorbed, the energy excites the chlorophyll molecules, and a fast electron transfer sets up the charge separation. Intrigued, Thurnauer and her team then made a laboratory version of the energy pump that keeps the negatively charged electrons away from the positively charged holes they leave b...