Polyfunctional carotenoid synthesis toward elucidation of highly efficient energy transfer by marine photosynthetic organisms

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26410183
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Bio-related chemistry
• Research Institution: Osaka City University
• Principal Investigator: Sakaguchi Kazuhiko 大阪市立大学, 大学院理学研究科, 准教授 (80264795)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): HASHIMOTO HIDEKI 大阪市立大学, 複合先端研究機構, 教授 (50222211)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: フコキサンチン / 海洋光合成初期過程 / 超分子複合体 / ICT準位 / 超効率的エネルギー伝達 / パラセントロン

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The highly oxidized marine carotenoid fucoxanthin is a representative light-harvesting pigment for photosynthesis in the sea. This carotenoid exhibits exceptionally high-energy transfer efficiency (>85%) in the fucoxanthin -chlorophyll a-protein (FCP) complex. In this project, we succeeded in the synthesis of natural apocarotenoid paracentrone, which was a one cyclohexane-moiety free analogue of fucoxanthin, and its derivatives by the sequential cross coupling reactions of novel bifunctional C5 diene units as key building brocks. The ultrafast time resolved spectra measurement of paracentrone revealed that this carotenoid possessed the intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) state, which contributed to the remarkably high light-harvesting efficiency in marine photosynthesis. Toward elucidation of the mechanism of this super function by marine photosynthetic organisms, reconstitution of the corresponding super complex containing paracentrone is in progress.

Free Research Field

有機合成化学