Chlorophyll and porphyrins: Evolution, photosynthesis, and environment

Abstract

In photoautotrophs, chloropigments act as primary light-harvesting pigments for capturing solar energy. The basic structure of the tetrapyrrole nucleus of chloropigments is long preserved in the sedimentary record as porphyrins. Since the porphyrins contains 4 nitrogen atoms, which are originated by photoautotrophs, the nitrogen isotopic composition of these porphyrins is quite useful for reconstructing the ancient nitrogen cycle in the surface ocean. In this presentation, I will review the investigation of sedimentary porphyrins through the last 80 years.