Ebook: Photosynthesis in silico : Understanding Complexity from Molecules to Ecosystems

Photosynthesis in silico: Understanding Complexity from Molecules to Ecosystems is a unique book that aims to show an integrated approach to the understanding of photosynthesis processes. In this volume - using mathematical modeling - processes are described from the biophysics of the interaction of light with pigment systems to the mutual interaction of individual plants and other organisms in canopies and large ecosystems, up to the global ecosystem issues. Chapters are written by 44 international authorities from 15 countries. Mathematics is a powerful tool for quantitative analysis. Properly programmed, contemporary computers are able to mimic complicated processes in living cells, leaves, canopies and ecosystems. These simulations - mathematical models - help us predict the photosynthetic responses of modeled systems under various combinations of environmental conditions, potentially occurring in nature, e.g., the responses of plant canopies to globally increasing temperature and atmospheric CO₂ concentration. Tremendous analytical power is needed to understand nature's infinite complexity at every level. This book is not a list of equations and computer programs, but the emphasis is on analytical ideas facilitating the understanding of complex interactions governing the photosynthetic process on every level and between different levels of hierarchy. The book provides the necessary background on photosynthesis and demonstrates the benefits of the computer-aided quantitative analysis of its reactions; it is designed for graduate students and researchers in plant physiology, functional plant biology, plant biochemistry, systems biology, biophysics, bio-energy and bio-fuel.

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Shows an integrated approach to the understanding of photosynthesis processes. Using mathematical modeling, this title describes processes from the biophysics of the interaction of light with pigment systems to the mutual interaction of individual plants and other organisms in canopies and large ecosystems, up to the global ecosystem issues. Content: Trends and Tools for Modeling in Modern Biology; Scaling and Integration of Kinetic Models of Photosynthesis: Towards Comprehensive E-Photosynthesis; Modeling Light Harvesting and Primary Charge Separation in Photosystem I and Photosystem II; Unraveling the Hidden Nature of Antenna Excitations; Models of Chlorophyll a Fluorescence Transients; Modeling of Chlorophyll a Fluorescence Kinetics in Plant Cells: Derivation of a Descriptive Algorithm; Modeling of the Primary Processes in a Photosynthetic Membrane; Clustering of Electron Transfer Components: Kinetic and Thermodynamic Consequences. Biochemical Model of C3 PhotosynthesisModeling the Temperature Dependence of C3 Photosynthesis; A Model of the Generalized Stoichiometry of Electron Transport Limited C3 Photosynthesis: Development and Applications; Modeling the Kinetics of Activation and Reaction of Rubisco from Gas Exchange; Leaf C3 Photosynthesis in silico: Integrated Carbon/Nitrogen Metabolism; Leaf C4 Photosynthesis in silico: The CO2 Conc. Abstract: Shows an integrated approach to the understanding of photosynthesis processes. Using mathematical modeling, this title describes processes from the biophysics of the interaction of light with pigment systems to the mutual interaction of individual plants and other organisms in canopies and large ecosystems, up to the global ecosystem issues