Photosynthesis-Related

Photosynthesis-related proteins are key functional-protein sets participating in the entire process of light capture, light conversion, photosynthetic carbon assimilation, and photosynthate transport—the energy basis of the green biogeochemical cycle, holding a central position in crop-yield improvement, light-use-efficiency enhancement, and artificial-photosynthesis research. These proteins include: photosystem II reaction-center and antenna pigment proteins (D1/PsbA, D2/PsbD, CP43 and CP47 core antenna complexes PsbC/PsbD, Lhcb1–Lhcb6 light-harvesting complexes); photosystem I reaction-center and electron-transport proteins (PsaA/PsaB core, PSI antenna Lhca1–Lhca5, ferredoxin Fd, ferredoxin reductase FNR, cytochrome b6f complex PetA/PetB/PetC); photosynthetic electron transport and proton-gradient coupling components (plastoquinone PQ, plastocyanin PC, ATP synthase CF0-CF1 CPa and cFc subunits); key carbon-assimilation enzymes (Rubisco large subunit rbcL and small subunit rbcS, Rubisco activase, 3-phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase, malate dehydrogenase, pyruvate phosphate dikinase); C4 and CAM carbon-concentration enzymes (PEP carboxylase, pyruvate and peptide transporters, NADP-malic enzyme, PEP carboxykinase, carbonic anhydrase CA); chloroplast photoprotection and photo-regulation systems (PsbS, NPQ proteins, STN7 and STN8 kinases, D1 repair and Psb27, zeaxanthin and violaxanthin and ZEP); and photosynthate export and sugar metabolism (sucrose phosphate synthase SPS, sucrose transporter SUT, triose phosphate translocator TPT, starch synthase and phosphorylase AGPase). Photosynthesis-related targets hold a key position and broad prospects in improving crop yield, light-use efficiency, stress and drought/salt tolerance, and photosynthetic biofactories and synthetic biology.