Light Dependent

Reaction
Efeson Lovel A. Bantillo
 Light Dependent Reaction

The light-dependent reactions use light energy to make two

molecules needed for the next stage of photosynthesis: the
energy storage molecule ATP and the reduced electron carrier
NADPH. In plants, the light reactions take place in the
thylakoid membranes of organelles called chloroplasts.
 NADPH
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate,
abbreviated NADP⁺ or, in older notation, TPN, is a
cofactor used in anabolic reactions, such as the Calvin
cycle and lipid and nucleic acid syntheses, which require
NADPH as a reducing agent. NADPH is the reduced form,
whereas NADP⁺ is the oxidized form.

ATP
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the source of energy for use
and storage at the cellular level.
 Photosystems
• large complexes of proteins and pigments (light-absorbing
molecules) that are optimized to harvest light, play a key role
in the light reactions. There are two types of photosystems:
photosystem I (PSI) and photosystem II (PSII).
• Both photosystems contain many pigments that help collect
light energy, as well as a special pair of chlorophyll molecules
found at the core (reaction center) of the photosystem. The
special pair of photosystem I is called P700, while the special
pair of photosystem II is called P680.
Non-cyclic photophosphorylation (the "standard" form of the
light-dependent reactions)
 Non-cyclic photophosphorylation (the
"standard" form of the light-dependent
reactions) electrons are removed from
water and passed
through PSII and PSI before ending up in NADPH. This process
requires light to be absorbed twice, once in each photosystem, and
it makes ATP . In fact, it's called photophosphorylation because it
involves using light energy (photo) to make ATP from ADP
(phosphorylation).
 Process
•Light absorption in PSII. When light is absorbed by
one of the many pigments in photosystem II, energy is
passed inward from pigment to pigment until it reaches
the reaction center. There, energy is transferred to P680,
boosting an electron to a high energy level. The high-
energy electron is passed to an acceptor molecule and
replaced with an electron from water. This splitting of
water releases the oxygen we breathe.
 Process
•ATP synthesis. The high-energy electron travels down
an electron transport chain, losing energy as it goes.
Some of the released energy drives pumping of H ions
+

from the stroma into the thylakoid interior, building a

gradient. ( H ions from the splitting of water also add to
+

the gradient.) As H ions flow down their gradient and

+

into the stroma, they pass through ATP synthase, driving

ATP production in a process known as chemiosmosis.
 Process
•Light absorption in PSI. The electron arrives at
photosystem I and joins the P700 special pair of
chlorophylls in the reaction center. When light energy is
absorbed by pigments and passed inward to the reaction
center, the electron in P700 is boosted to a very high
energy level and transferred to an acceptor molecule. The
special pair's missing electron is replaced by a new
electron from PSII (arriving via the electron transport
chain).
 Process
•NADPH formation. The high-energy electron
travels down a short second leg of the electron
transport chain. At the end of the chain, the electron
is passed to NADP (along with a second electron
from the same pathway) to make NADPH.
 The Result
The net effect of these steps is to convert light energy
into chemical energy in the form of ATP and NADPH.
The ATP and NADPH from the light-dependent
reactions are used to make sugars in the next stage of
photosynthesis, the Calvin cycle.
 Photosystem
Photosynthetic pigments, such as
chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and
carotenoids, are light-harvesting
molecules found in the thylakoid
membranes of chloroplast. Each
photosystem has light-harvesting
complexes that contain
proteins, 300- 400 chlorophylls, and
other pigments. When a pigment
absorbs a photon, it is raised to
an excited state, meaning that one of its
electrons is boosted to a higher-energy
orbital.
 Photosystem
Most of the pigments in a photosystem
act as an energy funnel, passing energy
inward to a main reaction center. When
one of these pigments is excited by
light, it transfers energy to a
neighboring pigment through direct
electromagnetic interactions in a
process called resonance energy
transfer. The neighbor pigment, in turn,
can transfer energy to one of its own
neighbors, with the process repeating
multiple times.
Collectively, the pigment molecules collect
energy and transfer it towards a central part
of the photosystem called the reaction
center.
The reaction center of a photosystem
contains a unique pair of
chlorophyll a molecules, often
called special pair. Once energy reaches
the special pair, it will no longer be passed
on to other pigments through resonance
energy transfer. Instead, the special pair
can actually lose an electron when excited,
passing it to another molecule in the
complex called the primary electron
acceptor. With this transfer, the electron
will begin its journey through an electron
transport chain.
 Electron Transport Chain
When an electron leaves PSII, it is transferred first to
a small organic molecule (plastoquinone, Pq), then to
a cytochrome complex (Cyt), and finally to a copper-
containing protein called plastocyanin (Pc). As the
electron moves through this electron transport chain, it
goes from a higher to a lower energy level, releasing
energy. Some of the energy is used to pump protons
(H+) from the stroma (outside of the thylakoid) into
the thylakoid interior.
Once an electron has gone down the first leg of the
electron transport chain, it arrives at PSI, where it
joins the chlorophyll a special pair called P700.
Because electrons have lost energy prior to their
arrival at PSI, they must be re-energized through
absorption of another photon.
Excited P700 is a very good electron donor, and it
sends its electron down a short electron transport
chain. In this series of reactions, the electron is
first passed to a protein called ferredoxin (Fd),
then transferred to an enzyme
called NADP+ reductase. NADP+ reductase
transfers electrons to the electron carrier
NADP+ to make NADPH. NADPH will travel to
the Calvin cycle, where its electrons are used to
build sugars from carbon dioxide.
The other ingredient needed by the
Calvin cycle is ATP, and this too is
provided by the light reactions. As we
see, H ions build inside the thylakoid
+

interior and make a concentration

gradient. Protons "want" to diffuse
back down the gradient and into the
stroma, and their only route of passage
is through the enzyme ATP synthase.
ATP synthase harnesses the flow of
protons to make ATP from ADP and
phosphate (P). This process of making
ATP using energy stored in a chemical
gradient is called chemiosmosis.
 Cyclic
Photophosphorylation

In some cases, electrons break this

pattern and instead loop back to the first
part of the electron transport chain,
repeatedly cycling through PSI instead of
ending up in NADPH. This is
called cyclic photophosphorylation.
After leaving PSI, cyclically flowing
electrons travel back to the cytochrome
complex (Cyt) or plastoquinone (Pq) in
the first leg of the electron transport
chain . The electrons then flow down the
chain to PSI as usual, driving proton
pumping and the production of ATP.
 Trivia
There are two types of photosystems in the light-
dependent reactions, photosystem II
(PSII) and photosystem I (PSI). PSII comes first
in the path of electron flow, but it is named as
second because it was discovered after PSI.