2011 Photosynthetic Systems Research Meeting Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel Baltimore, MD November 6-9, 2011 Office of Basic Energy Sciences Chemical Sciences, Geosciences & Biosciences Division 2011 Photosynthetic Systems Research Meeting Program and Abstracts Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel Baltimore, MD November 6-9, 2011 Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences Division Office of Basic Energy Sciences Office of Science U.S. Department of Energy i Cover art is taken from the public domain and can be found at: http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=16623&picture=backlit-leaves. This document was produced under contract number DE-AC05-060R23100 between the U.S. Department of Energy and Oak Ridge Associated Universities. The research grants and contracts described in this document are, unless specifically labeled otherwise, supported by the U.S. DOE Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences Division. ii Foreword This volume provides a record of the second biennial meeting of the Principal Investigators (PIs) funded by the Photosynthetic Systems program and is sponsored by the Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences Division of the Office of Basic Energy Sciences (BES) in the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Within DOE BES, there are two programs that fund basic research in energy-relevant biological sciences, Photosynthetic Systems and Physical Biosciences. These two Biosciences programs, along with a strong program in Solar Photochemistry, comprise the current Photochemistry and Biochemistry Team. This meeting specifically brings together under one roof all of the PIs funded by the Photosynthetic Systems program, along with Program Managers and staff not only from DOE BES but also other offices within DOE, the national labs, and other federal funding agencies. Our goal in holding these research meetings is to provide an environment that fosters exchange of information on your DOE-funded work; facilitates cooperation and collaboration among research groups; provides opportunities for discussions with DOE Program Managers and staff; and promotes sharing of new ideas and methodologies. Accordingly, “down time” is scheduled to encourage informal discussions and interactions. This year’s agenda features two invited speakers. We are pleased to have Dr. John Turner from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory who will talk about hydrogen production from photoelectrochemical cells (PECs), providing “food for thought” regarding the economic and theoretical considerations of PECs. We are also delighted to have Dr. W.E. Moerner from Stanford University who will tell you about exciting developments in the use of Anti- Brownian ELectrokinetic (ABEL) trap technology to understand behavior of individual photosynthetic antenna proteins and redox enzymes. While we extend a warm welcome and our sincere appreciation to our invited speakers, the real star at this year’s meeting is you. Your productivity, creativity, and commitment to world-class science come across in your abstracts and not only make a meeting like this possible but also gratifying and enjoyable. We hope that the meeting will further enhance the innovation and success of your research efforts and build a robust community of researchers in the study of photosynthesis and energy capture, conversion, and storage in plants, algae, and photosynthetic microbes. Whether you are delivering a talk or presenting a poster, we sincerely appreciate your contribution to this meeting. It has been an extraordinary time in DOE’s Office of Science, and we also thank you for your many contributions to the successful execution of our many funding opportunities over the last few years. Finally, we thank Diane Marceau and Dawn Adin from DOE BES and Connie Lansdon, Tim Ledford, and Verda Adkins-Ferber from Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) for their invaluable help in planning and successfully executing the many logistical tasks associated with this meeting. B. Gail McLean, Program Manager, Photosynthetic Systems, DOE BES Robert J. Stack, Program Manager, Physical Biosciences, DOE BES Richard V. Greene, Lead, Photochemistry and Biochemistry Team, DOE BES iii iv Agenda Agenda AGENDA 2011 Photosynthetic Systems Research Meeting Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel, Baltimore, MD November 6-9, 2011 Sunday, November 6, 2011 3:00 – 6:00 p.m. Registration 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. Reception (No Host) 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. Dinner at Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel 7:30 – 8:00 p.m. Welcome and Opening Remarks Gail McLean, Program Manager, Photosynthetic Systems Richard V. Greene, Lead, Photochemistry & Biochemistry Team, DOE BES Monday, November 7, 2011 7:30 – 8:30 a.m. *****Continental Breakfast***** Session I 8:30 – 9:00 a.m. Welcome and Photosynthetic Systems Program Update Gail McLean, Program Manager, Photosynthetic Systems 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. Hydrogen Production from Photoelectrochemical Cells: Economic and theoretical considerations and experimental results John Turner, National Renewable Energy Laboratory 10:00 – 10:30 a.m. *****Break***** Session II Moderator: Dave Tiede, Argonne National Laboratory 10:30 – 11:00 a.m. Structure and Mechanism of the Mn4Ca Cluster in Photosystem II Using X-ray Spectroscopy Vittal Yachandra, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory 11:00 – 11:30 a.m. Studies of Photosynthetic Reaction Centers and Biomimetic Systems Marilyn Gunner, City College of New York 11:30 – 12:00 p.m. Maximizing Photosystem II Water Oxidizing Efficiency through the Identification of Optimal Protein Coordination Environments G. Charles Dismukes, Rutgers University 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. *****Lunch***** 1:00 – 1:45 p.m. DOE Update and News Eric Rohlfing, Director, Chemical Sciences, Geosciences & Biosciences Division, DOE BES Session III Moderator: Rob Burnap, Oklahoma State University 1:45 – 2:15 p.m. Membrane-attached Electron Carriers in Photosynthesis and Respiration: Cytochrome c maturation (Ccm-System I) in a facultative photosynthetic bacterium Fevzi Daldal, University of Pennsylvania v 2:15 – 2:45 p.m. Controlling Electron Transfer Pathways in Photosynthetic Proteins Christine Kirmaier, Washington University and Deborah Hanson, Argonne National Laboratory 2:45 – 3:15 p.m. Nature-Driven Photochemistry for Solar Fuels Production: Photosynthetic Interprotein and Biohybrid Electron Transfer Lisa M. Utschig, Argonne National Laboratory 3:15 – 6:00 p.m. *****Free/Discussion Time (Put up your poster too!)***** 6:00 – 6:30 p.m. *****Reception (No-Host)***** 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. *****Dinner at Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel***** Poster Session I 7:30 – 9:30 p.m. *****Odd Numbered Posters (No-Host)***** Tuesday, November 8, 2011 7:30 – 8:30 a.m. *****Continental Breakfast***** Session IV: Physical Biosciences Program Guest Lecturer Moderator: Bob Stack, Program Manager, Physical Biosciences 8:30 – 9:30 a.m. Photodynamics of Single Antenna Proteins and Redox Enzymes in Solution by Suppression of Brownian Motion W.E. Moerner, Stanford University 9:30 – 10:00 a.m. *****Break***** Session V Moderator: Sergei Savikhin, Purdue University 10:00 – 10:30 a.m. Photoreceptor Regulation And Optimization Of Energy Harvesting In Nostoc punctiforme J. Clark Lagarias, University of California, Davis 10:30 – 11:00 a.m. Carotenoid Antennae in Retinal-based Light-driven Proton Pumps Janos K. Lanyi, University of California, Irvine 11:00 – 11:30 a.m. Characterization of the Conformational Flexibility in Light Harvesting Complexes Ann E. McDermott, Columbia University 11:30 – 12:00 p.m. Molecular Analysis of the FMO Antenna Complex from Green Sulfur Bacteria Robert Blankenship, Washington University 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. *****Lunch***** Session VI Moderator: Steve Theg, University of California, Davis 1:00 – 1:30 p.m. Antisense RNAs in the Chloroplast David Stern, Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research 1:30 – 2:00 p.m. MSH1: a novel interorganellar environmental response mechanism in higher plants Sally Mackenzie, University of Nebraska vi 2:00 – 2:30 p.m. Post-Transcriptional Regulation of Ethylene Perception and Signaling in Arabidopsis Eric Schaller, Dartmouth College 2:30 – 3:00 p.m. Eukaryotic initiation factor 3 (eIF3) and mRNA leader sequences as agents of translational regulation in Arabidopsis Albrecht G. von Arnim, University of Tennessee 3:00 – 7:30 p.m. *****Free/Discussion Time and Dinner on Your Own***** Poster Session II 7:30 – 9:30 p.m. *****Even Numbered Posters (No-Host)***** Wednesday, November 9, 2011 7:30 – 8:30 a.m. *****Continental Breakfast***** Session VII Moderator: Mike Salvucci, USDA – Agricultural Research Center 8:30 – 9:00 a.m. Role of the Rubisco Small Subunit Robert Spreitzer, University of Nebraska 9:00 – 9:30 a.m. Structure, Function, and Assembly of Rubisco Activase Rebekka M. Wachter, Arizona State University 9:30 – 10:00 a.m. Disruption of C4 photosynthesis by changes in light quantity and quality: Implications for CO2 fixation and photosynthetic efficiency in C4 crop and biofuel species Asaph Cousins, Washington State University 10:00 – 10:30 a.m. *****Break***** Session VIII Moderator: Ralph Henry, University of Arkansas 10:30 – 11:00 a.m. Tha4 topology and direct interaction with translocating precursor mature domain during transport on the cpTat pathway Carole Dabney-Smith, Miami University 11:00 – 11:30 a.m. Thylakoid Biogenesis – Significance of Protein Maturation and Mechanism of Protein Targeting Kentaro Inoue, University of California, Davis 11:30 – 12:00 p.m. Thylakoid