The phycobilisome; how can light energy be converted to chemical energy with 95% efficiency?

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With fossil fuel supplies decreasing and global warming effects growing, solar energy is increasingly in demand. However, current solar panel efficiency is low with solar panels on most homes in the UK operating at only 15-20% efficiency. Red microalgae, in contrast, achieve 95% efficiency through their photosynthetic machinery, termed phycobilisomes. Harnessing these molecular systems for renewable energy applications has tremendous potential for the biotechnological industry. However, first we need to know what these phycobilisomes are made of and, thus, what makes these biological machines operate with such high efficiency.This research proposal will, for the first time, use state-of-the-art mass spectrometry to characterise the phycobilisome in red microalgae. By addressing this research question from an entirely new angle, we will deepen our understanding of how the phycobilisome is constructed. The phycobilisome efficiency will be altered by changing the light conditions during microalgae growth. By tracking the structural features of the phycobilisome with photosynthetic efficiency, we will determine the critical factors that are necessary for efficient light transmission and as such determine which phycobilisome composition is the most efficient for photosynthesis. The findings of which are essential to allow us to construct these highly efficient microscopic machines for incorporation into solar panel devices. The results of this proposal will have broad impact in the academic community amongst structural biologists, mass spectrometrists and within the solar energy and microalgae communities, with any knowledge gained being rapidly translatable for industrial use.