Jan Florian Kern
Chemist Senior Staff Scientist
Research Interests
My research is focused on elucidating the structure and function of metalloenzymes using a combination of X-ray methods. The main emphasis is on understanding the mechanism of light-driven water oxidation in Photosystem II, a large membrane protein present in all organisms that conduct oxygenic photosynthesis. For this purpose, we use very intense femtosecond X-ray pulses as delivered by the X-ray free electron laser, Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS), at Stanford. This technique allows us to record X-ray diffraction and X-ray spectroscopic data from the enzyme under working (physiological) conditions and provide information about the geometric and electronic structure of the catalytic site (a Mn4CaO5 cluster) of the enzyme during the water oxidation reaction. Also, we are working on generalizing these approaches to other metalloenzymes to study reaction intermediates not accessible with conventional X-ray methods.
Recent Publications
Related News
Atomic X-ray Laser Opens Door to Attosecond Imaging
A newly discovered X-ray laser approach is fast and powerful enough to capture details about the movement of electrons.
Congratulations to Biosciences Area Director’s Award Recipients
Several Biosciences Area personnel are among the 2024 recipients of Berkeley Lab Director’s Achievement Awards. The program recognizes outstanding contributions by employees to all aspects of Lab activities.
Sauer Leaves Legacy in Science and Teaching
As a young man, Kenneth Sauer joined Berkeley Lab four years after arriving in Berkeley for his postdoctoral position with famed chemist Melvin Calvin. By that time, he had accepted an assistant professorship in UC Berkeley’s Department of Chemistry to continue what would be his life’s scientific work on the intricate physical process of photosynthesis. He remained active for over 50 years and was, most recently, a professor emeritus of chemistry at UC Berkeley. Sauer died at the age of 91 following a brief illness on November 6, 2022.
