title: The discovery of state transitions in photosynthesis 40 years ago.
abstract: In the late 1960s, I identified an aspect of the kinetics of chlorophyll fluorescence in algal cells that I was unable to explain in terms of photochemical quenching. I proposed a novel regulatory mechanism for the distribution of light energy to photosystems I and II, which is now known by the term of "state transitions." I also examined the "cation-dependent redistribution of light energy" to photosystems I and II and the "energy-dependent quenching" of chlorophyll fluorescence. At that time, financial constraints prevented me from measuring the emission and action spectra of chlorophyll fluorescence at liquid-nitrogen temperature and the light quality-dependent changes in the yield of chlorophyll fluorescence at room temperature. The financial problems were solved by constructing several pieces of electronic equipment using skills obtained by repairing radios when I was a high-school and college student.
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, 444-8585, Japan. murata@nibb.ac.jp
authors.forename: Norio
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Murata
mesh_terms: D001901:Botany / Q000266:history*; D002734:Chlorophyll / Q000502:physiology; D004579:Electron Transport / Q000502:physiology*; D049673:History, 20th Century; D010788:Photosynthesis / Q000502:physiology*; D012106:Research / Q000266:history*
chemical_list: D002734:Chlorophyll