Energy transfer from two luteins to chlorophylls in light-harvesting complex II study by using exciton models with phase correction

Abstract

In light-harvesting complex II of plants, the two lutein pigments (LUT1 and LUT2) are always paired and an energy transfer pathway between them is believed to exist. However, it remains unclear whether this pathway is essential for the energy transfer between carotenoids and chlorophylls. In this work, we performed hybrid quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics simulations with Frenkel exciton models to investigate this energy transfer. The results show that the energy transfer pathways between the S₂ state of LUT1 and CLAs are not affected by LUT2 S₂. The energy transfer between LUT and chlorophyll-a (CLA) also follows a resonance mechanism. The two LUTs have different energy transfer pathways according to their energy gaps and coupling strengths with each CLA. The present work sheds light on the energy transfer pathways involved in the two LUTs.