Water Photolysis in Biology

Abstract

At the heart of photosynthesis, the main process by which solar energy enters the biosphere, is a fascinating enzyme that oxidizes water and as a side effect produces the oxygen in the atmosphere. In their perspective, Rutherford and Boussac describe how a structure of the enzyme determined by Ferreira et al. contributes to our understanding of photosynthesis. Besides providing the long-awaited structure of the catalytic site, the work provides constraints for future mechanistic models.