Antennenpigmente

Antennenpigmente, also known as antenna pigments or light-harvesting pigments, are molecules within the photosystems of photosynthetic organisms that absorb light energy and transfer it to the reaction center. These pigments form an "antenna complex" surrounding the reaction center chlorophyll molecules. The primary role of antenna pigments is to broaden the spectrum of light that can be captured for photosynthesis. While chlorophyll a is the primary photosynthetic pigment and is found in the reaction center, antenna pigments include a variety of accessory pigments like chlorophyll b, carotenoids, and phycobilins. Each of these pigments absorbs light at different wavelengths, allowing the organism to utilize a wider range of the solar spectrum. Once a photon is absorbed by an antenna pigment, the energy is transferred through a process of resonance energy transfer to neighboring pigments, eventually reaching the reaction center chlorophyll. This efficient energy transfer ensures that even low-energy photons can be captured and utilized for the initiation of the photosynthetic process. The composition and arrangement of antenna pigments vary among different photosynthetic organisms, reflecting adaptations to different light environments and evolutionary histories.