The new theory of electron transfer: application to the photosynthetic reaction centre

Based on recent developments in the theory of electron transfer, we prove that a non-polar environment is needed to maintain the high efficiency and chemical integrity of the photosynthetic reaction centre. We also determine the Gibbs energy diagram for the primary act of charge separation in photosynthesis, and propose an equivalent circuit that captures the principal features of the entire acceptor side of the electron transport chain in photosystem II.