Peridinin-chlorophyll-protein complex Peridinin-chlorophyll-protein complex The peridinin-chlorophyll-protein complex (PCP or PerCP) is a soluble molecular complex consisting of the peridinin-chlorophyll a-protein bound to peridinin, chlorophyll, and lipids. The peridinin molecules absorb light in the blue-green wavelengths (470 to 550 nm) and transfer energy to the chlorophyll molecules with extremely high efficiency. PCP complexes are found in many photosynthetic dinoflagellates, in which they may be the primary light-harvesting complexes. The PCP protein has been identified in dinoflagellate genomes in at least two forms, a homodimeric form composed of two 15-kD monomers, and a monomeric form of around 32kD believed to have evolved from the
Carotenoid especially reds and purples, are due to other classes of chemicals. Carotenoids serve two key roles in plants and algae: they absorb light energy for use in photosynthesis, and they protect chlorophyll from photodamage. Carotenoids that contain unsubstituted beta-ionone rings (including beta-carotene, alpha-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin and gamma-carotene) have vitamin A activity (meaning that they can be converted to retinol), and these and other carotenoids can also act as antioxidants. In the eye, lutein, meso-zeaxanthin, and zeaxanthin are present as macular pigments whose importance in visual function remains under clinical research in 2017. The basic building blocks of carotenoids are isopentenyl diphosphate