Molecular basis of the response of photosynthetic apparatus to light and temperature stress

Climate change, and its related problems with plant productivity, raise questions about the ability of plants to adapt to the changing environment, and mechanisms underlying the processes of adaptation. Photosynthetic apparatus of plants, and other photosynthetic organisms, concentrate primary reactions of photosynthesis related to the effective absorption of solar energy -- the release of oxygen, ATP synthesis, and providing a substrate for subsequent biochemical processes. The relationship between the structure of thylakoid membranes, the composition of the lipid and protein components, the amount of photosynthetic pigments, and the efficiency of primary processes of photosynthesis have been the subject of intensive research for many years and now have a great deal of factual material. These studies gain the utmost importance in the research of influence of the stresses from the environment on the efficiency of photosynthesis. Studies, both in vivo and in vitro, have identified a number of dependencies and relationships between the structural organization of thylakoid membranes of plants and alterations of photosynthetic performance during action of high and low temperatures and high light intensity.

The purpose of this Research Topic is to collect and present the latest knowledge on structural and functional changes in photosynthetic apparatus, as a result of impact of high and low temperatures in combination with optimal and high light intensity.

We welcome papers on research related to the treatment of whole plants with stress temperatures, and in the treatment of the isolated chloroplasts and subchloroplast fractions.
Articles dealing with the changes in the structure and composition of the membranes thylakolds as a result of the influence of high and low temperatures, and how these changes support the efficient operation of the photosynthetic apparatus are also welcome.

This Research Topic provides a space for investigation of stress-induced changes in the stoichiometry and reorganization of the main pigment protein complexes of both photosystems and their light harvesting complexes in order to ensure better efficiency of the process of light energy utilization.

This Research topic will focus on effects of high light and temperature on pigment content, thylakoid protein and lipid composition and organization. More of the Topics of Frontiers in Plant Science cover the effects of a changing environment on the response of the whole plant, the synthesis of protective substances, etc., but this theme will be devoted mainly to changes in photosynthetic apparatus and primary processes of photosynthesis at the molecular level.