Main description:

Chlorophyll a Fluorescence: A Signature of Photosynthesis highlights chlorophyll (Chl) a fluorescence as a convenient, non-invasive, highly sensitive, rapid and quantitative probe of oxygenic photosynthesis. Thirty-one chapters, authored by 58 international experts, provide a solid foundation of the basic theory, as well as of the application of the rich information contained in the Chl a fluorescence signal as it relates to photosynthesis and plant productivity. Although the primary photochemical reactions of photosynthesis are highly efficient, a small fraction of absorbed photons escapes as Chl fluorescence, and this fraction varies with metabolic state, providing a basis for monitoring quantitatively various processes of photosynthesis. The book explains the mechanisms with which plants defend themselves against environmental stresses (excessive light, extreme temperatures, drought, hyper-osmolarity, heavy metals and UV). It also includes discussion on fluorescence imaging of leaves and cells and the remote sensing of Chl fluorescence from terrestrial, airborne, and satellite bases. The book is intended for use by graduate students, beginning researchers and advanced undergraduates in the areas of integrative plant biology, cellular and molecular biology, plant biology, biochemistry, biophysics, plant physiology, global ecology and agriculture.

Contents:

Editorial.- Contents.- Preface.- Color Plates.- 1. Chlorophyll a Fluorescence: A Bit of Basics and History; Govindjee.- 2. Fluorescence of Photosynthetic Pigments in Vitro and in Vivo; George C. Papageorgiou.- 3. Chlorophyll Fluorescence as a Probe of Photosynthetic Productivity; Neil. R. Baker, Kevin Oxborough.- 4. Nuts and Bolts of Excitation Energy Migration and Energy Transfer; Robert M. Clegg.- 5. Transfer and Trapping of Excitations in Plant Photosystems; Rienk van Grondelle, Bas Gobets.- 6. System Analysis and Photoelectrochemical Control of Choroplyll Fluorescence in Terms of Trapping Models of Photosystem II: A Challenging View; Wim J. Vredenberg.- 7. Photon Capture, Exciton Migration and Trapping and Fluorescence Emission in Cyanobacteria and Red Algae; Mamoru Mimuro.- 8. Photosystem II: Oxygen Evolution and Chlorophyll a Fluorescence Induced by Multiple Flashes; Vladimir Shinkarev.- 9. Fluorescence of Photosystem I; Shigeru Itoh, Kana Sugiura.- 10. The Relationship between Photosynthetic Electron Transfer and its Regulation; David M. Kramer et al.- 11. Pulse-Amplitude-Modulation (PAM) Fluorometry and Saturation Pulse Method: An Overview; Ulrich Schreiber.- 12. Analysis of the Chlorophyll a Fluorescence Transient; Reto J. Strasser et al.- 13. Light Emission as a Probe of Charge Separation and Recombination in the Photosynthetic Apparatus: Relation of Prompt Fluorescence to Delayed Light Emission and Thermoluminescence; Esa Tyystjarvi, Imre Vass.- 14. Chlorophyll Fluorescence Imaging of Leaves and Fruits; Ladislav Nedbal, John Whitmarsh.- 15. Using Chlorophyll a Fluorescence Imaging to Monitor Photosynthetic Performance; Kevin Oxborough.- 16. Remote Sensing of Chlorophyll Fluorescence: Instrumentation and Analysis: Ismael Moya, Zoran G. Cerovic.- 17. Probing the Mechanism of State Transitions in Oxygenic Photosynthesis by Chlorophyll Fluorescence Spectroscopy, Kinetics and Imaging; John F. Allen, Conrad W. Mullineaux.- 18. Non-photochemical EnergyDissipation Determined by Chlorophyll Fluorescence Quenching: Characterization and Function: G. Heinrich Krause, Peter Jahns.- 19. Excess Light Stress: Multiple Dissipative Processes of Excess Excitation: Doug Bruce, Sergej Vasil'ev.- 20. Using Mutants to Understand Light Stress Acclimation in Plants; Talila Golan et al.- 21. Excess Light Stress: Probing Excitation Dissipation Mechanisms through Global Analysis of Time- and Wavelenght-Resolved Chlorophyll a Fluorescence; Adam M. Gilmore.- 22. Chlorophyll Fluorescence as a Tool to Monitor Plant Response to the Environment; William W. Adams III, Barbara Demmig-Adams.- 23. Plant Responses to Ultraviolet Radiation Stress; Manfred Tevini.- 24. Effects of Water Stress on the Photosynthetic Efficiency of Plants; Nikolai G. Bukhov, Robert Carpentier.- 25. Chlorophyll a Fluorescence as a Probe of Heavy Metal Ion Toxicity in Plants; Manoj K. Joshi, Prasanna Mohanty.- 26. Water and Solute Transport in Cyanobacteria as Probed by Chlorophyll Fluorescence; Geoerge C. Papageorgiou, Kostas Stamatakis.- 27. Assembly of Light-Harvesting Complexes of Photosystem II and the Role of Chlorophyll b; J. Kenneth Hoober, Joan H. Argyroudi-Akoyunoglou.- 28. Light Adaptation and Senescence of the Photosynthetic Apparatus. Changes in Pigment Composition, Chlorophyll Fluorescence Parameters and Photosynthetic Activity; Hartmut K. Lichtenthaler, Fatbardha Babani.- 29. From Leaves to Ecosystems: Using Chlorophyll Fluorescence to Assess Photosynthesis and Plant Function in Ecological Studies; Jeannine Cavender-Bares, Fakhri A. Bazzaz.- 30. Development and Application of Variable Chlorophyll Fluorescence Techniques in Marine Ecosystems; Paul G. Falkowski et al.- 31. Plant Productivity of Inland Waters; John A. Raven, Stephen C. Maberly.- Index.