BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam//NONSGML v1.0//EN NAME:PhD defence K. Hajduk METHOD:PUBLISH BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART:20260605T114500 DTEND:20260605T131500 DTSTAMP:20260605T114500 UID:phd-defence-k-hajduk@8F96275E-9F55-4B3F-A143-836282E12573 CREATED:20260924T223951 LOCATION:Main building VU, 1105, Aula, De Boelelaan, 1081 HV, Amsterdam SUMMARY:PhD defence K. Hajduk X-ALT-DESC;FMTTYPE=text/html:

The pH-Sensing in Ph otosynthetic Protection: The Role of Light-Harvesting Complexes and P sbS

More insight into how plants protect themselv es from damage by excessive sunlight

Biophysicist Kin ga Hajduk's research on photosynthesis centers on a natural protectiv e mechanism that prevents plants from "burning out" when they absorb more light than they can handle.

To do this, plants use a proce ss known as nonphotochemical quenching (NPQ). In this process, excess light energy is safely dissipated before damage occurs to the photos ynthetic system. While it was known that the protein PsbS plays an im portant role in activating this protection, exactly how this process works at the molecular level remained unclear for a long time.

Hajduk's research shows that PsbS likely functions as a distinct unit that interacts with other proteins to initiate the protective respon se. In addition, laboratory experiments show that even without PsbS, the protective mechanism can still be activated under extremely acidi c conditions. At the same time, the results show that key light-trapp ing proteins do not directly detect changes in acidity, as previously thought. Thus, the findings shed new light on the complex cooperatio n among proteins that protect plants from light stress.

The res ults of Hajduk's research are especially important for agriculture an d food production. Due to climate change, crops increasingly face ext reme heat and intense sunlight. A better understanding of plants' nat ural "sun protection" can help develop crops that use light more effi ciently and waste less energy. This could lead to higher yields and s tronger plants under varying climatic conditions.

According to researchers, there are already initial examples where modifications t o similar proteins have led to more productive crops. In the future, these new insights could contribute to more targeted improvement of c rops that are more resistant to heat and light stress. Although pract ical applications still take time, the research represents an importa nt step toward more sustainable and climate-resilient agriculture.

More information about the thesis

DESCRIPTION: The pH-Sensing in Photosynthetic Protection: The Role of Light-Harvesting Complexes and PsbS

More insight into how plants protect themselves from damage by excessive sunlight

Biophysicist Kinga Hajduk's research on photosynthesis centers o n a natural protective mechanism that prevents plants from "burning o ut" when they absorb more light than they can handle.To do this, plan ts use a process known as nonphotochemical quenching (NPQ). In this p rocess, excess light energy is safely dissipated before damage occurs to the photosynthetic system. While it was known that the protein Ps bS plays an important role in activating this protection, exactly how this process works at the molecular level remained unclear for a lon g time.Hajduk's research shows that PsbS likely functions as a distin ct unit that interacts with other proteins to initiate the protective response. In addition, laboratory experiments show that even without PsbS, the protective mechanism can still be activated under extremel y acidic conditions. At the same time, the results show that key ligh t-trapping proteins do not directly detect changes in acidity, as pre viously thought. Thus, the findings shed new light on the complex coo peration among proteins that protect plants from light stress.The res ults of Hajduk's research are especially important for agriculture an d food production. Due to climate change, crops increasingly face ext reme heat and intense sunlight. A better understanding of plants' nat ural "sun protection" can help develop crops that use light more effi ciently and waste less energy. This could lead to higher yields and s tronger plants under varying climatic conditions.According to researc hers, there are already initial examples where modifications to simil ar proteins have led to more productive crops. In the future, these n ew insights could contribute to more targeted improvement of crops th at are more resistant to heat and light stress. Although practical ap plications still take time, the research represents an important step toward more sustainable and climate-resilient agriculture.More infor mation about the thesis END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR