Min Chen is the 2011 recipient of the Science Minister's Prize for Life Scientist of the Year.
Credit: Prime Minister's Science Prizes
SYDNEY: The discovery of a new type of chlorophyll in the rocky stromatolites of Shark Bay in Western Australia has resulted in Min Chen being awarded the Science Minister's Prize for Life Scientist of the Year.
Chlorophyll is the pigment found in plants that absorbs light into one of two types of photosystems which eventually allow the processing of sugars for energy.
It had previously been found to exist in four different forms named chlorophyll a, b, c and d. The new type of chlorophyll, dubbed chlorophyll f, has been shown to absorb much farther into the red end of the visible spectrum, and it has potential applications in the solar cells and crop plants.
"Chen is now the unquestioned world expert on the biology and biochemistry of photosynthetic cyanobacteria that utilise alternative pigments to chlorophyll a," said Robert Blankenship of Washington University in Missouri.
Chen, a research scientist from the University of Sydney, was awarded the AU$50,000 prize at a ceremony in the Great Hall of Parliament House in Canberra earlier tonight.
Challenging the physical limits
Chen's discovery of chlorophyll f was made by studying the cyanobacteria growing in the low-light conditions within stromatolites: outcrops of rock built up by sediment trapped in cyanobacteria biofilms.
With the kind of serendipity that has become a trademark of some of the most significant discoveries in science, Chen was not specifically searching for chlorophyll f. "I was actually looking for chlorophyll d, which we knew could be found in cyanobacteria living in low white light, but enriched far-red light, conditions."
Instead, she discovered the first new form of chlorophyll in 67 years, hidden inside a species of single-celled cyanobacteria that is yet to be classified.
The new form is thought to have the same chemical formula as chlorophyll b, but with a different underlying bonding structure, leading to its extended far red light absorption properties. "Chlorophyll f challenges the physical limits of oxygenic photosynthesis," said Chen. "Such spectral extension will allow the photosynthetic organisms [to] use the light we cannot see, extending the solar energy input for photosynthesis."
More efficient solar energy
The future of Chen's research is in learning more about the chlorophyll f molecule, including how it works and how exactly it is formed in the cyanobacteria organisms.
"I am planning to investigate the biosynthetic pathway for formation of this new type of chlorophyll," she said. The knowledge gained from the molecule's mechanism of photosynthesis could provide insights into the development of more efficient solar or bioenergy options.
Chen says that in her research the key was persistence. "Select some important problems and work hard on them. Do not give up easily." She also emphasised the importance of working together with other scientists. "Open your mind for collaboration. No one can do everything. It is very gratifying to have been selected for this prize by my scientific peers from Australia," said Chen.
