Wanner Hall 201G, Polytechnic campus 6073 S Backus Mall Mail code 2780
Mesa, AZ 85212-2780
Mail code: 2780
Campus: Poly
Long Bio
Alexander Melkozernov is a researcher and educator with a strong interdisciplinary background at crossover of Biology, Biochemistry and Biophysics. As a postdoctoral scholar, Alexander was involved in ASU research projects of Professor Blankenship on molecular mechanisms behind the efficient excitation energy conversion processes in the photosynthetic molecular machines. His research portfolio includes several research projects, numerous publications in the peer-reviewed journals and participation in national and international conferences. In 2010-2014, Alexander was a Scientific Program Manager for the Center for Bio-Inspired Solar Fuel Production at then Department of Chemistry at ASU. Alexander’s late focus is teaching. For more than 10 years he is involved in teaching of Chemistry and Biology disciplines in different modes of instruction.
Education
Ph.D. Russian Academy of Sciences Institute of Biophysics - 1990
Molecular mechanisms of natural photosynthesis; Bioenergy
Publications
Melkozernov, A.N. (2014) From Ionizing Radiation to Photosynthesis. In: Golbeck, J., van der Est, A. (eds) The Biophysics of Photosynthesis. Biophysics for the Life Sciences, Vol. 11, Springer, Heidelberg. pp. 383-482
Stefan A. Rensing, Daniel Lang, Andreas D. Zimmer, Astrid Terry, Asaf Salamov, Harris Shapiro, Tomoaki Nishiyama, Pierre-Francois Perroud, Erika A. Lindquist, Yasuko Kamisugi, Takako Tanahashi, Keiko Sakakibara, Tomomichi Fujita, Kazuko Oishi, Tadasu Shin-I, Yoko Kuroki, Atsushi Toyoda, Yutaka Suzuki, Shin-ichi Hashimoto, Kazuo Yamaguchi, Sumio Sugano, Yuji Kohara, Asao Fujiyama, Aldwin Anterola, Setsuyuki Aoki, Neil Ashton, W. Brad Barbazuk, Elizabeth Barker, Jeffrey L. Bennetzen, Robert Blankenship, Sung Hyun Cho, Susan K. Dutcher, Mark Estelle, Jeffrey A. Fawcett, Heidrun Gundlach, Kousuke Hanada, Alexander Heyl, Karen A. Hicks, Jon Hughes, Martin Lohr, Klaus Mayer, Alexander Melkozernov, Takashi Murata, David R. Nelson, Birgit Pils, Michael Prigge, Bernd Reiss, Tanya Renner, Stephane Rombauts, Paul J. Rushton, Anton Sanderfoot, Gabriele Schween, Shin-Han Shiu, Kurt Stueber, Frederica L. Theodoulou, Hank Tu, Yves Van de Peer, Paul J. Verrier, Elizabeth Waters, Andrew Wood, Lixing Yang, David Cove, Andrew C. Cuming, Mitsuyasu Hasebe, Susan Lucas, Brent D. Mishler, Ralf Reski, Igor V. Grigoriev, Ralph S. Quatrano,* Jeffrey L. Boore (2008) The Physcomitrella Genome Reveals Evolutionary Insights into the Conquest of Land by Plants. SCIENCE, vol. 319, no. 5859, pp.64-69
Melkozernov, A.N. and Blankenship, R.E. (2006) Photosynthetic functions of Chlorophylls. In Chlorophylls and Bacteriochlorophylls: Biochemistry, Biophysics, Functions and Applications (Grimm, B., Porra, R., Rüdiger, W., and Scheer, H., Eds.), Vol 25 of Advances in Photosynthesis and Respiration Series (ISBN 1-4020-4515-8) Editor: Govindjee. Springer, Dordrecht, pp. 397–412
Fromme, P., Yu, H.Q., DeRuyter, Y.S., Jolley, C., Chauhan, D.K., Melkozernov, A.N., and Grotjohann, I. (2006) Structure of photosystems I and II. Comptes Rendus Chimie 9, 188-200
Melkozernov, A.N., Barber, J., and Blankenship, R.E. (2006) Light-harvesting in Photosystem I supercomplexes. Biochemistry 45, 331 - 345
Melkozernov, A.N. and Blankenship, R.E. (2005) Structural and functional organization of the peripheral light-harvesting system in Photosystem I. Photosynth. Res., 85, 33-50
Melkozernov, A.N., Kargul, J., Lin, S., Barber, J., and Blankenship, R.E. (2005) Spectral and kinetic analysis of the energy coupling in the PSI-LHCI supercomplex from the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii at 77 K. Photosynth. Res., 86, 203-215
Melkozernov, A.N., Kargul, J., Lin, S., Barber, J., and Blankenship, R.E. (2005) Excited State Dynamics in the PSI-LHCI Supercomplex from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii: Excitation Wavelength Dependence Study. In Photosynthesis: Fundamental Aspects to Global Perspectives (van der Est, A., and Bruce, D., Eds.), Vol. 1, Allen Press Inc., Lawrence, Kansas, pp. 178 - 180
Melkozernov, A.N., Kargul, J., Lin, Su, Barber, J., and Blankenship, R.E. (2004) Energy coupling in the PSI-LHCI supercomplex from the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii J. Phys. Chem. B, 108, 10547-10555
Ilagan, R.P., Shima, S., Melkozernov, A.N., Lin, S., Blankeship, R.E., Hiller, R.G., Birge, R.R., and Frank, H.A. (2004) Spectroscopic properties of the main-form and high-salt peridinin-chlorophyll a-proteins from Amphidinium carterae. Biochemistry, 43, 1478-1487
Fromme, P., Melkozernov, A.N., Jordan, P., and Krauss, N. (2003) Structure and Function of Photosystem I: Interaction with its soluble electron carriers and external antenna systems. FEBS Lett., 555, 40-44
Melkozernov, A.N., and Blankenship, R.E. (2003) Structural modeling of the Lhca4 subunit of LHCI-730 peripheral antenna in photosystem I based on similarity with LHCII. J. Biol. Chem., 278: 44542-44551
Melkozernov, A.N., Bibby, T.S., Lin, Su, Barber, J., and Blankenship, R.E. (2003) Time-resolved absorption and emission show that CP43’ antenna ring of iron-stressed Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 is efficiently coupled to the Photosystem I reaction center core. Biochemistry, 42, 3893-3903
Melkozernov, A.N., Lin, Su, Schmid, V.H.R., Paulsen, H., and Blankenship, R.E. (2002) Excitation energy transfer in Lhca1 subunit of the LHCI-730 subpopulation of photosystem I peripheral antenna. J. Phys. Chem. B, 106, 4313-4316
Melkozernov, Su Lin, V.H.R. Schmid, E. Lago-Places, H. Paulsen, R.E. Blankenship (2001) Molecular origin of red pigments in the peripheral light-harvesting antenna of Photosystem I: Ultrafast absorption spectroscopy of recombinant Lhca4, Proc. XIIth Inter. Congress Photosynthesis, Brisbane, Australia, 18-23 August, 2001
Gibasiewicz, K., Ramesh, V.M., Melkozernov, A.N., Lin, Su, Woodbury, N.W., Blankenship, R.E., and Webber, A.N. (2001) Excitation dynamics in the core antenna of PS I from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii CC2696 at room temperature. J. Phys. Chem. B, 105, 11498-11506
Melkozernov, A.N. (2001) Excitation energy transfer in photosystem I from oxygenic organisms. Photosynth. Res., 70, 129-154
Melkozernov, A.N., Lin, Su, Blankenship, R.E. and Valkunas, L. (2001) Spectral inhomogeneity of Photosystem I and its influence on excitation equilibration and trapping in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 at 77 K. Biophys. J., 81, 1144-1154
Melkozernov, A.N., Lin, Su, Schmid, V.H.R., Paulsen, H., Schmidt, G.W., and Blankenship, R.E. (2000) Ultrafast excitation dynamics of low energy pigments in reconstituted peripheral light-harvesting complexes of Photosystem I. FEBS Lett., 471, 89-92
Melkozernov, A.N., Lin, Su, and Blankenship, R.E. (2000) Femtosecond transient spectroscopy and excitonic interactions in Photosystem I. J. Phys. Chem. B, 104, 1651-1656
Melkozernov, A.N., Lin, Su, and Blankenship, R.E. (2000) Excitation dynamics and heterogeneity of energy equilibration in the core antenna of photosystem I from the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. Biochemistry, 39, 1489-1498
Melkozernov, A.N., Lin, S., and Blankenship, R.E. (1998) Energy Equilibration in the Antenna of Photosystem I from the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. In Photosynthesis: Mechanisms and Effects. Garab, G., Ed., Vol. I. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, Vol. I, pp. 405-408
Melkozernov, A.N., Schmid, V., Schmidt, G.R., and Blankenship, R.E. (1998) Energy redistribution in heterodimeric light-harvesting complex LHC I-730 of Photosystem I. J. Phys. Chem. B, 104, 8183-8189
Schweitzer, R., Melkozernov, A.N., Blankenship, R.E., and Brudwig, G. (1998) Time-resolved fluorescence measurements of Photosystem II: The effect of quenching by oxidized ChlZ. J. Phys. Chem. B, 104, 8320-8326
Melkozernov, A.N., Olson, J.M., Li, Y.-F., Allen, J.P., and Blankenship, R.E. (1998) Exciton interactions and orientation of the Fenna-Matthews-Olson protein in the membranes of the green sulfur bacterium Chlorobium tepidum. Photosynth. Res., 56, 315-328
Melkozernov, A.N., Su, H., Webber, A.N., and Blankenship, R.E. (1998) Excitation energy transfer in thylakoid membranes from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii lacking chlorophyll b and with mutant Photosystem I. Photosynth. Res., 56, 197-207
Melkozernov, A.N., Hui Su, Su Lin, Bingham S., Webber A.N., and Blankenship R.E. (1997) Specific mutation near the primary donor in Photosystem I from Chlamydomonasreinhardtii alters the trapping time and spectroscopic properties of P700. Biochemistry, 36, 2898-2907
Research Activity
Fromme,Petra*, Melkozernov,Alexander N, Webber,Andrew Neil. Structure and function of supercomplexes of Photosystem I with its peripheral antenna systems in green algae and cyanobacteria. NSF-MPS(12/1/2004 - 11/30/2011).
Melkozernov,Alexander N. ENGERGY COUPLING IN THE PHOTOSYSTEM I SUPERCOMPLEXES. USDA-CSREES(9/1/2003 - 8/31/2007).
Melkozernov,Alexander N. PATHWAYS OF EXCITATION ENERGY TRANSFER IN LIGHT-HARVESTING COMPLEXES OF PHOTOSYSTEM I FROM HIGHER PLANTS. USDA(9/15/2001 - 9/30/2003).
