Photobiology and Bioenergy

The aim of this course is to equip postgraduate students with a comprehensive understanding of how plants harness and optimize sunlight to drive the photosynthetic process. Through these lessons, students will gain the necessary knowledge to comprehend why plants, over the course of their evolution, have developed strategies to enhance the efficiency of light capture and utilization while safeguarding against potential damage from intense irradiation.
Students will delve into the evolutionary imperative behind plants' optimization of sunlight capture, a necessity driven by their immobile nature. This immobility has spurred the development of intricate molecular mechanisms capable of sensing and interpreting various aspects of light, including its quantity, quality, and direction.
Key concepts within the discipline will be elucidated through established models, while also incorporating recent and occasionally conflicting discoveries to provide a dynamic learning experience.

At the end of the course, students will attain:
1. Profound knowledge regarding the molecular mechanisms through which plants discern various wavelengths of sunlight via specific photoreceptors.
2. Comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms employed to detect the continuous fluctuations in both spectrum and intensity of light.
3. Insight into the mechanisms by which plants gauge the duration of daylight and its ramifications on seasonal perception.
4. A thorough grasp of the molecular mechanisms underpinning chloroplast biogenesis.
5. In-depth understanding of the molecular mechanisms facilitating chloroplast adaptation to environmental dynamics.
6. Insightful strategies aimed at enhancing photosynthetic efficiency, pertinent to the context of a second green revolution.