Structural basis of photosynthetic water-splitting

Photosynthetic water-splitting takes place in photosystem II (PSII), a membrane protein complex consisting of 20 subunits with an overall molecular mass of 350 kDa. The light-induced water-splitting reaction catalyzed by PSII not only converts light energy into biologically useful chemical energy, but also provides us with oxygen indispensible for sustaining oxygenic life on the earth. We have solved the structure of PSII at a 1.9 Å resolution, from which, the detailed structure of the Mn4CaO5-cluster, the catalytic center for water-splitting, became clear. Based on the structure of PSII at the atomic resolution, possible mechanism of light-induced water-splitting was discussed.