Chlorophyll and carotenoid are vital components that can be found in the intrinsic part of chloroplast. Their functions include light-harvesting, energy transfer, photochemical redox reaction, as well as photoprotection. These pigments are bound non-covalently to protein to make pigment-protein supercomplex. The exact number and stoichiometry of these pigments in higher plants are varied, but their compositions include chlorophyll (Chl) a, Chl b, lutein, neoxanthin, violaxanthin, zeaxanthin and β-carotene. This chapter provides introduction to the structure and photophysical properties of these pigments, how they assemble as pigment-protein complexes and how they do their functions. Various common methods for isolation, separation and identification of chlorophylls and carotenoid are also discussed.
Part of the book: Plant Growth and Regulation