Photosynthesis is the most dominant energy conversion process on the planet. Understanding how photosynthesis functions at the mechanistic and regulatory levels will allow man to exploit energy capture and storage performed by photoautotrophic organisms by redirecting energy flow into high density fuels and/or electrical current. Designing scientific platforms that capture photosynthetic energy will require the skills of biologists who understand physiological and biochemical processes, molecular biologists and bioengineers, who can modify those processes in specific ways, biophysicists who can help predict the consequences of some of the potential modifications and provide the analytical tools to assay those consequences, and electrical and mechanical engineers who can help build systems that interface with or mimic the biological systems. It is with this diverse view of photosynthetic processes that the 22nd Western Photosynthesis Conference will be convened in Asilomar California on Jan 3-6, 2013. This meeting will present a broad landscape of photosynthesis, providing the attendees with the most up-to-date view of photosynthetic processes ranging from photosynthetic electron transport and energy conversion, to the fixation of carbon in cultured organisms and ecological systems, to a new understanding of the dynamics of the oxygen evolving complex. Included in the program are two Plenary Speakers, Dr. Thomas Jaramillo, a young faculty member (Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University) investigating water splitting and hydrogen evolution on surfaces coated with inorganic catalysts, and Dr. Stephen Palumbi (Director of the Hopkins Marine Station), who has developed a project exploring the health of the coral reefs and the role of photosynthesis in the biology of the reefs in a changing environment. There will also be six symposium sessions which are: An Engineers View of Photosynthesis, chaired by Dr. Thomas Moore (Arizona State University), The Diversity of Photosynthetic and Related Metabolic Processes in the Oceanic Environment, chaired by Dr. Jonathan Zehr (UC Santa Cruz), Photosynthetic Structure and Function, chaired by Dr. Petra Fromme and Dr. Rebekka Wachter (Arizona State University), Genomics and the Use of High-Throughput Technologies, chaired by Dr. Martin Jonikas (Carnegie Institution for Science), The Biophysics and Biochemistry of the Light Reactions, chaired by Dr. Junko Yano and Dr. Bruno Robert, and The Use of Inorganic Carbon and Potential Production of Fuels, chaired by Dr. Donald Ort, Chair. Overall, this meeting will bring together open-minded researchers with a diversity of technical expertise and different ways of thinking about systems and processes that will lead to a deeper understanding of photosynthetic processes and rational ways to tailor the process to help create more robust systems for sustaining the growing population on the planet.
Broader Impact: This meeting will have over 100 attendees with approximately 65 students and postdoctoral research associates and over 35 senior scientists (Professors and staff at research institutes). It is a meeting in which, traditionally, strong interactions occur among scientists at all career levels, often leading to fruitful collaborations. Furthermore, usually nearly half of the attending students and postdoctoral research associates are expected to give oral presentations and most of the remainder will present posters. The meeting provides an excellent venue for the younger scientists to develop their communication skills. This year the students will be provided with novel orientations toward understanding photosynthetic processes, including "Photosynthesis in the Environment" (an environment which is rapidly changing), and the "The Eye of the Engineer on Photosynthetic Energy Capture" (the use of engineering principles to understand and exploit photosynthetic processes). In the view of the organizers, it is critical that the students who will help shape the scientific future of the planet understand the complexity of photosynthetic processes, how cross-disciplinary approaches result in a more realistic and precise view of photosynthesis in the natural environment, and also help develop potential paths that will ameliorate the energy crisis looming in the future.
This report summarizes the outcome of the the 22nd Western Photosynthesis Conference, which was held in Asilomar California on Jan 3-6, 2013. I served as the organizer and Rebekka Wachter served as the co-organizer. Photosynthesis is a process that drives much of the energetics that governs survival of the biotic component of the Earth, as well as impacting and transforming the abiotic component. It is a process that allows energy stored in photons to be used to drive the reduction of CO2 in the synthesis of compounds having high energy densities, and the production of ATP, the energy currency of the cell. These compounds serve as the foundation of the structural organization of life and the driving force that creates shape, growth and reproduction, movement and dynamic interactions necessary to establish and sustain habitats that integrate with features of the environment. But photosynthesis is also a dangerous process that generates strong oxidants and reductants that are highly reactive… and if not carefully controlled (and quenched if necessary) they will interact with O2 creating reactive species that can severely damage cells and organisms, either destroying the cells directly, or weaken them to the extent that they can no longer ward off the overtures of bacteria or viruses. There are many critical aspects of photosynthetic processes that are essential to understand if we are to fully appreciate interactions that impact the equilibrium in the natural environment, and we must learn more about how photosynthetic processes have been tailored, both at the functional and regulatory levels, if we are to hope to understand how changes in the climate and terrestrial and oceanic conditions that accompany climate change, will impact photosynthesis and the health of species in the numerous habitats of the Earth. At this point, we have made significant progress in understanding how a number of the catalytic components of photosynthesis function, but we have little understanding of the regulatory processes of photosynthesis, how photosynthesis functions in nature, and how environmental change will impact this function. There were a number of purposes in developing this conference on photosynthesis and that we feel were achieved: 1. We focused on regulatory processes in photosynthesis and potential ways to elucidate those processes. 2. We also presented photosynthesis from a mechanistic, regulatory, ecological and enginerring perspectives. To achieve this we included participants from a number of different fields including engineering, ecology, molecular biology and biophysics. 3. The orientation was also on generating a broad interest among students and faculty. The total attendance of this local meeting including over 100 paricipants of which between 60 and 70 were students and postdoctorals. In addition to about 50 talks, there were also over 50 posters. During meetings like this we are training our future intellectual resource (students and postdoctoral fellows) and orienting them toward critical issues associated with photosynthetic processes, including food, energy and fuels. 4. This has also been a forum for people entering the field of photosynthesis from other fields (this meeting included oceanographers, biophysicists and engineers). Meetings like this help to build bridges between disciplines. The power of the meeting was in both the plenary talks and the student presentations and posters. There is a booklet with all of the abstracts to both the talks and the posters that was given out at registration. Below I am just listing the plenary talks to provide a flavor of the interdisciplinary nature of the meeting: Invited talks Steve Palumbi (Hopkins Marine Station, Monterey, CA): Photosynthesis and the Ecology of the Coral Reefs Jonathan Zehr (UC Santa Cruz): Carbon and Nitrogen-Fixing Microorganisms in the Oceans: Evolution, Genetic Diversity and Symbiosis Donald Ort (University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign): The Use of Inorganic Carbon and Potential Production of Fuels Fritz Prinz (Stanford University) An Engineer’s Perspective on Energy Conservation in Photosynthesis Bruno Robert - Special Guest Speaker (Institut de biologie et de technologies de Saclay): Carotenoids, Energy Transduction and Stress Responses
