Biological Chemistry
David Kramer
Biological Energy Transduction: Importance for Photosynthesis,
Climate, and Health
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The research conducted by Dr. Kramer and his colleagues on chloroplasts has direct implications for increasing plant productivity and in redirecting photosynthetic energy towards new and efficient biochemical pathways to harness bioenergy. Their work is resulting in a better understanding of how our enzymes avoid toxic byproducts and how this goes wrong in disease. They are also exploring how to ‘redirect’ energy transducing systems to kill parasites like Plasmodium or cancer cells.
Their research is strongly integrated into the University’s major research emphases—plant sciences and bioenergy. The urgent issues of climate change and energy independence require an understanding of how photosynthesis works, what specific reactions limit its productivity, and how these limitations can be overcome to redirect more output towards readily useable biofuels.
One ongoing research aim is to understand how specific reactions of photosynthesis are integrated within the living organism, and how their properties affect the productivity and survival of the plant. The researchers have developed a ‘toolbox’ of non-invasive instruments and spectroscopic approaches that allow them to observe photosynthetic reactions in vivo, under natural photosynthetic conditions, to determine how they limit and regulate photosynthetic energy flow. This work is leading to real progress in understanding how the chloroplast balances efficiency with the avoidance of photodamage.
Ideally, enzymes will ‘steer’ chemical reactions to favor a desired product while avoiding toxic side products. The Kramer group aims to understand the physical basis and physiological importance of these processes—using as model systems enzymes that reduce quinones and oxidize quinols, which have evolved a range of strategies to ‘tame’ their highly reactive semiquinone intermediates. An emerging direction is their use of directed evolution to create and understand novel protein binding pockets that stabilize reactive intermediates.
Contact Information
David Kramer, Ph.D.
Professor
Institute of Biological Chemistry
Washington State University
P.O. Box 646340
Pullman, WA 99164-6340
Telephone: 509-335-4964
E-mail: dkramer@wsu.edu
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