Light-harvesting Pigment Protein Research Articles

Comprehensive Analysis of Phycoerythrin 545 Stability and the Apoptotic Impact of Its Degradation Products on HT29 Cells.

This study investigates the properties and potential applications of phycoerythrin 545, a naturally occurring light-harvesting pigment protein from Rhodomonas salina. Phycoerythrin 545, characterized by its bright red color and maximum absorption wavelength at 545 nm, was extracted using freeze-thawing methods, further purified, and analyzed using chromatographic, spectroscopic techniques, and sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Phycoerythrin 545 consists of two subunits, primarily α and β, but lacks the γ subunit, and is stable at 4 °C within a pH range of 3-10. To further characterize it, its susceptibility to degradation by trypsin was assessed. The biological activity of phycoerythrin 545 and its degradation products were investigated in HT29 human colon cancer cells. The results showed that the degradation products, particularly those within 3-10 kDa, significantly decreased the viability of HT29 cells by inducing apoptosis. Mechanistic studies indicated these effects were mediated through the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)/extracellular signal-regulated kinases and MAPK/c-Jun N-terminal Kinase signaling pathways and involved the regulation of key apoptotic proteins such as p53, Bim, Bad, Bak, and Bax, leading to the activation of the Caspase-3 apoptotic pathway. These findings contribute to understanding the structural and functional properties of phycoerythrin 545, laying a foundation for its exploration in food industry applications and cancer therapy supplementation.

Study on the Mechanism of Exogenous 5-Aminolevulinic Acid (ALA) in Regulating the Photosynthetic Efficiency of Pear Leaves

To provide a theoretical basis for the application of ALA in pear production, the effects of exogenous 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) treatment on leaf photosynthetic gas exchange parameters, chlorophyll fast fluorescence properties, and relative expression of the related genes were investigated using pear (Pyrus pyrifolia Nakai cv. ‘Whasan’) as a material in the study. The results show that exogenous ALA treatment improved the photosynthetic gas exchange parameters of pear leaves, upregulated the expression of multiple key genes which are related to ALA biosynthesis, metabolism, and transformation into chlorophylls. GUS staining in tobacco leaves showed that exogenous ALA activated the promoter activity of PypHEMA and PypCHLH genes, implying that the synthesis of endogenous ALA and chlorophylls was promoted by exogenous ALA. Furthermore, ALA promoted the expression of the genes encoding photosystem II (PSII) reaction center proteins, such as core protein D1, inner light-harvesting pigment proteins CP43 and CP47, and cytochrome b559. This led to increased PSII reaction center activity. In addition, ALA alleviated the donor side oxygen-evolving complex inhibition and reduced the closure rate on the receptor side, allowing for increased photochemical electron transfer and reduced heat dissipation while improving the photosynthetic performance index PIabs and PItotal. The findings of this study contribute to a better understanding of ALA’s promotion of plant photosynthetic efficiency, providing valuable insights for further research and potential applications in pear production.

Responses of the photosynthetic characteristics of summer maize to shading stress

AbstractThe vast majority of the energy and substance required for maize growth and development and related metabolic processes come from the photosynthesis of leaves. Over the past 60 years, the amount of solar radiation reaching the earth's surface has decreased significantly, reducing the photosynthetic rate of crops and leading to a significant reduction in yields. However, (1) the effects of shading stress on stomatal characteristics, electron transport efficiency of summer maize leaves and (2) the adaptability of summer maize to low light are still unclear. In order to investigate this problems, maize hybrid Denghai605 (DH605) was used as the experimental materials, and two treatments of shading (shading degree is 60%) and CK (natural light as control) were set in the field. The results showed that shading stress resulted in chloroplast dysplasia, and the overall performance of the two photosystems was reduced by 27.85%. The number of stomata per unit area decreased by 15.6% and the proportion of stomatal opening decreased by 73.1% after shading, which resulted in a significant 27.7% reduction in intercellular CO2 concentration. Shading significantly reduced photosynthetic rate by affecting stomatal characteristics and electron transport, and the former was the main influencing factor. The decrease in carbon assimilation capacity resulted in insufficient assimilate supply and significantly reduced grain allocation ratio, resulting in a significant yield reduction of 57.5%. However, in the low‐light environment, the expression of chlorophyll‐binding protein in the leaf of summer maize was upregulated, the content of Lhcb1 protein of the light harvesting pigment protein complex II (LHCII) was increased, and the content of photosynthetic pigment, especially chlorophyll b, was increased, which increased the absorption and capture of blue light, improved the efficiency of light energy utilization, and was a stress manifestation of summer maize adapting to shading stress.

Excited States of Xanthophylls Revisited: Toward the Simulation of Biologically Relevant Systems

Xanthophylls are a class of oxygen-containing carotenoids, which play a fundamental role in light-harvesting pigment–protein complexes and in many photoresponsive proteins. The complexity of the manifold of the electronic states and the large sensitivity to the environment still prevent a clear and coherent interpretation of their photophysics and photochemistry. In this Letter, we compare cutting-edge ab initio methods (CC3 and DMRG/NEVPT2) with time-dependent DFT and semiempirical CI (SECI) on model keto-carotenoids and show that SECI represents the right compromise between accuracy and computational cost to be applied to real xanthophylls in their biological environment. As an example, we investigate canthaxanthin in the orange carotenoid protein and show that the conical intersections between excited states and excited–ground states are mostly determined by the effective bond length alternation coordinate, which is significantly tuned by the protein through geometrical constraints and electrostatic effects.

Exciton Origin of Color-Tuning in Ca2+-Binding Photosynthetic Bacteria.

Flexible color adaptation to available ecological niches is vital for the photosynthetic organisms to thrive. Hence, most purple bacteria living in the shade of green plants and algae apply bacteriochlorophyll a pigments to harvest near infra-red light around 850–875 nm. Exceptions are some Ca2+-containing species fit to utilize much redder quanta. The physical basis of such anomalous absorbance shift equivalent to ~5.5 kT at ambient temperature remains unsettled so far. Here, by applying several sophisticated spectroscopic techniques, we show that the Ca2+ ions bound to the structure of LH1 core light-harvesting pigment–protein complex significantly increase the couplings between the bacteriochlorophyll pigments. We thus establish the Ca-facilitated enhancement of exciton couplings as the main mechanism of the record spectral red-shift. The changes in specific interactions such as pigment–protein hydrogen bonding, although present, turned out to be secondary in this regard. Apart from solving the two-decade-old conundrum, these results complement the list of physical principles applicable for efficient spectral tuning of photo-sensitive molecular nano-systems, native or synthetic.

Orange light spectra filtered through transparent colored polyvinyl chloride sheet enhanced pigment content and growth of Arthrospira cells

Microalgae are significantly affected by the spectra composition with various wavelengths. The development of light harvesting pigments can be controlled with specific wavelength of filtered light received by microalgae. Coverage of open raceway pond using transparent colored polyvinyl chloride sheets (PVCS) to filter light spectra, was assessed for the capacity to enhance biomass growth rate. Results showed that orange PVCS filtered light spectra at wavelengths from 480 to 665 nm, increased biomass dry weight (3.3 g/L) by 61% compared with control condition (white PVCS = 350–750 nm). Light spectra filtered through orange PVCS were more easily absorbed by the light harvesting pigment protein complex (phycobilisome) of Arthrospira platensis cells and subsequently transferred to intracellular photosynthesis reaction centers. Therefore, A. platensis cells cultivated with light spectra filtered through orange PVCS contained 62.7 mg/L chlorophyll-a and 23.5 mg/L carotenoid, which were 40% and 29% higher than control condition (with white PVCS).

Structure, function and applications of phycoerythrin: a unique light harvesting protein in algae

<p indent="0mm">Photosynthesis is an ancient and important chemical reaction process. Under light conditions, plants, algae, and certain bacteria convert solar energy into chemical energy. And then, chemical energy is directly used by living cells. A special light-harvesting pigment protein, phycobiliprotein (PBP), exists in red algae, cyanobacteria (blue-green algae), and some cryptophytes to capture light energy in the water environment. Since the first discovered of PBP, scientists have conducted in-depth research on the structure, function and application of PBP. PBP is a water-soluble protein. It is formed by the covalent connection of apoprotein and phycobilin. According to the spectral characteristics, PBP can be divided into four types: Phycoerythrin (PE), phycocyanin (PC), allophycocyanin (APC) and phycoerythrocyanin (PEC). Through the coordination of four PBPs, more than 95% of the energy can be efficiently transmitted. PE is the beginning of the energy transfer of the PBP system. It is composed of three subunits α, β and γ, and the molecular weight is about 240 kD. Among them, the γ subunit has the function of connecting and stabilizing, so that PE can exist in a stable (αβ) 6γ form. PE can covalently connect chromophores such as phycoerythrobilin (PEB) and phycourobilin (PUB), and has a strong absorption efficiency for short-wavelength blue and green light. It enables red algae and cyanobacteria to efficiently capture and transfer light energy in the deep blue and green light environment. PE is a bright red fluorescent protein. When excited by a specific wavelength, PE will emit strong fluorescence. Food-grade PE can be used as a natural colorant in food, cosmetics and other fields. High-purified PE is combined with proteins such as biotin and monoclonal antibodies to make fluorescent probes for immunodetection and other technologies; PE can also be used as a new photosensitizer for photodynamic therapy of deep tissues. In addition, PE has also been proven to have anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory biological activities, and has a certain therapeutic effect on Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, diabetes, liver and kidney toxicity and other diseases. But there is no doubt that PE has great potential in the field of biotechnology. The application of PE is closely related to its purity. China’s abundant red algae resources provide a large amount of raw materials for large-scale preparation of PE. However, there are many obstacles in the preparation of high-purified PE. The most commonly used column chromatography has the problem of expansion, while other purification processes are not mature. In view of the above problems, this review highlights an overview on the structure, function and purification process of PE. Then the applications of PE in optical and biological activities are reviewed and prospected. This article provides a reference for the high value processing and application of marine algae.

The Singlet–Triplet Fission of Carotenoid Excitation in Light-Harvesting Complexes from Thermochromatium tepidum

Abstract—Illumination of purple phototrophic bacteria in the carotenoid absorption band of light harvesting complexes often leads to low energy efficiency of absorbed light. This is due to singlet–triplet fission of carotenoid excitation. In the present study, the nature of this process was explored with a phototrophic bacterium Thermochromatium tepidum as an example. It was demonstrated by time-resolved EPR spectroscopy and magnetic field modulation of the fluorescence yield that the concept of intramolecular excitation fission that was developed in several publications was not confirmed experimentally. Evidence of the intermolecular character of excitation fission that involves two carotenoid molecules of the light-harvesting pigment–protein complexes, LH1-RC and LH2, has been obtained. The advantages of intermolecular excitation fission for application in photovoltaic solar energy converters are discussed.

Quantum Chemical Modeling of the Photoinduced Activity of Multichromophoric Biosystems.

Multichromophoric biosystems represent a broad family with very diverse members, ranging from light-harvesting pigment–protein complexes to nucleic acids. The former are designed to capture, harvest, efficiently transport, and transform energy from sunlight for photosynthesis, while the latter should dissipate the absorbed radiation as quickly as possible to prevent photodamages and corruption of the carried genetic information. Because of the unique electronic and structural characteristics, the modeling of their photoinduced activity is a real challenge. Numerous approaches have been devised building on the theoretical development achieved for single chromophores and on model Hamiltonians that capture the essential features of the system. Still, a question remains: is a general strategy for the accurate modeling of multichromophoric systems possible? By using a quantum chemical point of view, here we review the advancements developed so far highlighting differences and similarities with the single chromophore treatment. Finally, we outline the important limitations and challenges that still need to be tackled to reach a complete and accurate picture of their photoinduced properties and dynamics.

Connecting color with assembly in the fluorescent B-phycoerythrin protein complex.

Phycoerythrin is the major light-harvesting pigment protein in red algae and is nowadays widely used as a fluorescent probe in biotechnological applications such as flow cytometry and immunofluorescence microscopy. In addition, it has had substantial economic impact due to its potential as a natural food colorant. However, knowledge on the precise molecular composition of phycoerythrin is limited. Here, we use a combination of high-resolution native mass spectrometry (MS) and fluorescence spectroscopy to characterize the assembly properties of the B-phycoerythrin protein complex from Porphyridium cruentum. Our data highlight the stabilizing role of the γ subunit in the intact B-phycoerythrin protein complex. In addition, by native MS we monitor B-phycoerythrin (dis)assembly intermediates, providing insight into which species contribute to B-phycoerythrins color and the factors that give B-phycoerythrin its highly fluorescent properties. Together, the data provide significant insights into the structural properties of B-phycoerythrin which is beneficial for its use within the biotechnology industry.

Study on photoactivatable toxicity of phycobiliprotein from Microcystis aeruginosa as potential photoinsecticide

Our objective was to study if the phycobiliproteins of the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa rich in phycoerythrin can be used as a photosensitive insecticide. Microcystis, the main genus of freshwater algal blooms, is a rich source of phycobiliproteins (MC-PBP), which are the light-harvesting pigment proteins of cyanobacteria. In this study, we tested the photoactive toxicity of MC-PBP with mortality assays and morphological analysis in a Spodoptera frugiperda 21 (SF21) cell line, Caenorhabditis elegans, and Chilo suppressalis larvae. We found that MC-PBP was mainly localized in the lysosome in the SF21 cells. The LC50 on SF21 was 80 μg mL−1 with sunlight treatment of 880 μmol photons m−2 s−1 for 15 min and 1.5 mg mL−1 on Chilo suppressalis larva in fourth instar with the sunlight irradiation of 650 μmol photons m−2 s−1 for 5 h. Morphological observation demonstrated that autophagic apoptosis is the main death way of C. elegans, and midgut and fat body are the target tissues of C. suppressalis larvae induced by photoactive toxicity of MC-PBP. Interestingly, we also found that MC-PBP can degrade a certain amount of microcystin-LR (MC-LR), one variant of cyanobacterial microcystins. This is the first report showing that MC-PBP has potential for development into natural photosensitive insecticides which are environmental friendly but toxic for nematode and insect cells with degradation capacity for MC-LR.

Utilization of light by fucoxanthin-chlorophyll-binding protein in a marine centric diatom, Chaetoceros gracilis.

The major light-harvesting pigment protein complex (fucoxanthin-chlorophyll-binding protein complex; FCP) was purified from a marine centric diatom, Chaetoceros gracilis, by mild solubilization followed by sucrose density gradient centrifugation, and then characterized. The dynamic light scattering measurement showed unimodality, indicating that the complex was highly purified. The amount of chlorophyll a (Chl a) bound to the purified FCP accounted for more than 60% of total cellular Chl a. The complex was composed of three abundant polypeptides, although there are nearly 30 FCP-related genes. The two major components were identified as Fcp3 (Lhcf3)- and Fcp4 (Lhcf4)-equivalent proteins based on their internal amino acid sequences and a two-dimensional isoelectric focusing electrophoresis analysis developed in this work. Compared with the thylakoids, the FCP complex showed higher contents of fucoxanthin and chlorophyll c but lower contents of the xanthophyll cycle pigments diadinoxanthin and diatoxanthin. Fluorescence excitation spectra analyses indicated that light harvesting, rather than photosystem protection, is the major function of the purified FCP complex, which is associated with more than 60% of total cellular Chl a. These findings suggest that the huge amount of Chl bound to the FCP complex composed of Lhcf3, Lhcf4, and an unidentified minor protein has a light-harvesting function to allow efficient photosynthesis under the dim-light conditions in the ocean.

Observation of hybrid artificial photosynthetic membranes using peripheral and core antennae from two different species of photosynthetic bacteria by AFM and fluorescence micro-spectroscopy

The primary process of photosynthesis involves the absorption of sun-light by antenna complexes and subsequent transfer of excitation energy toward the reaction center where a charge separation takes place. This process is usually performed in photosynthetic membranes. The photosynthetic apparatus from purple photosynthetic bacteria contains the reaction center (RC) and two types of antenna complexes, the core antenna light-harvesting 1 (LH1) complex and the peripheral light-harvesting 2 (LH2) complex, and is embedded in these membranes. The arrangement of these light-harvesting pigment–protein complexes in the photosynthetic membranes does have an influence on the light-harvesting performance in the primary process of photosynthesis. In this study, we have constructed hybrid artificial photosynthetic membranes by introducing both LH2 complexes (from Rhodopseudomonas acidophila) and LH1-RC core complexes (from Blastochloris viridis) to a lipid bilayer system composed of Egg PC. The architecture of the artificial photosynthetic membranes can be varied by controlling the ratio of added LH2 to LH1-RC core complexes (LH1-RC/LH2 = 1/1, 1/2, 1/5, 1/12). Previous studies using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed that the packing of LH1-RC in a trigonal lattice was changed to orthorhombic by increasing the ratio of LH2 to LH1-RC. We further investigated the local arrangement of the pigment–protein complexes using high-resolution atomic force microscopy and postulate some types of arrangement depending on the condition of the sample preparation. LH2 to LH1 energy transfer was studied using confocal laser fluorescence microscopy with 400 nm spatial resolutions. We found a difference in the ratio of the fluorescence intensity emitted from LH2 and LH1 depending on the local arrangement of these antenna complexes in the hybrid artificial photosynthetic membranes. The effect of the arrangement of the pigment–protein complexes on the light harvesting efficiency is discussed.

Antioxidant Potential of Phycobiliproteins: Role in Anti-Aging Research

Aging research has made significant progress over recent years, particularly after the formulation of ‘Oxidative stress theory of aging’. According to this theory, aging and its associated abnormalities may be prevented, at least to some extent, by application of certain antioxidants. Cyanobacterial phycobiliproteins (PBPs), the major light harvesting pigment proteins are widely characterized for their in vivo and in vitro antioxidant activity. Since, reactive oxygen species (ROS) are considered as important factors to cause aging, PBPs can be used as an effective free radical scavengers and be a potent candidate to develop the anti-aging drug. The use of PBPs in preventing the oxidative stress mediated abnormalities or aging is rationally debated. The present review enlightens the recent advances in the field of antioxidant function of PBPs and major challenges in the application of these pigment proteins in anti-aging research. Also included is the possible mechanism behind the anti-aging capacity of these ecologically as well as economically important biomolecules.

High efficiency light harvesting by carotenoids in the LH2 complex from photosynthetic bacteria: unique adaptation to growth under low-light conditions.

Rhodopin, rhodopinal, and their glucoside derivatives are carotenoids that accumulate in different amounts in the photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodoblastus (Rbl.) acidophilus strain 7050, depending on the intensity of the light under which the organism is grown. The different growth conditions also have a profound effect on the spectra of the bacteriochlorophyll (BChl) pigments that assemble in the major LH2 light-harvesting pigment–protein complex. Under high-light conditions the well-characterized B800-850 LH2 complex is formed and accumulates rhodopin and rhodopin glucoside as the primary carotenoids. Under low-light conditions, a variant LH2, denoted B800-820, is formed, and rhodopinal and rhodopinal glucoside are the most abundant carotenoids. The present investigation compares and contrasts the spectral properties and dynamics of the excited states of rhodopin and rhodopinal in solution. In addition, the systematic differences in pigment composition and structure of the chromophores in the LH2 complexes provide an opportunity to explore the effect of these factors on the rate and efficiency of carotenoid-to-BChl energy transfer. It is found that the enzymatic conversion of rhodopin to rhodopinal by Rbl. acidophilus 7050 grown under low-light conditions results in nearly 100% carotenoid-to-BChl energy transfer efficiency in the LH2 complex. This comparative analysis provides insight into how photosynthetic systems are able to adapt and survive under challenging environmental conditions.

Light-Harvesting Complex Protein LHCBM9 Is Critical for Photosystem II Activity and Hydrogen Production in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Photosynthetic organisms developed multiple strategies for balancing light-harvesting versus intracellular energy utilization to survive ever-changing environmental conditions. The light-harvesting complex (LHC) protein family is of paramount importance for this function and can form light-harvesting pigment protein complexes. In this work, we describe detailed analyses of the photosystem II (PSII) LHC protein LHCBM9 of the microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii in terms of expression kinetics, localization, and function. In contrast to most LHC members described before, LHCBM9 expression was determined to be very low during standard cell cultivation but strongly increased as a response to specific stress conditions, e.g., when nutrient availability was limited. LHCBM9 was localized as part of PSII supercomplexes but was not found in association with photosystem I complexes. Knockdown cell lines with 50 to 70% reduced amounts of LHCBM9 showed reduced photosynthetic activity upon illumination and severe perturbation of hydrogen production activity. Functional analysis, performed on isolated PSII supercomplexes and recombinant LHCBM9 proteins, demonstrated that presence of LHCBM9 resulted in faster chlorophyll fluorescence decay and reduced production of singlet oxygen, indicating upgraded photoprotection. We conclude that LHCBM9 has a special role within the family of LHCII proteins and serves an important protective function during stress conditions by promoting efficient light energy dissipation and stabilizing PSII supercomplexes.

Disentangling the low-energy states of the major light-harvesting complex of plants and their role in photoprotection

The ability to dissipate large fractions of their absorbed light energy as heat is a vital photoprotective function of the peripheral light-harvesting pigment–protein complexes in photosystem II of plants. The major component of this process, known as qE, is characterised by the appearance of low-energy (red-shifted) absorption and fluorescence bands. Although the appearance of these red states has been established, the molecular mechanism, their site and particularly their involvement in qE are strongly debated. Here, room-temperature single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy was used to study the red emission states of the major plant light-harvesting complex (LHCII) in different environments, in particular conditions mimicking qE. It was found that most states correspond to peak emission at around 700nm and are unrelated to energy dissipative states, though their frequency of occurrence increased under conditions that mimicked qE. Longer-wavelength emission appeared to be directly related to energy dissipative states, in particular emission beyond 770nm. The ensemble average of the red emission bands shares many properties with those obtained from previous bulk in vitro and in vivo studies. We propose the existence of at least three excitation energy dissipating mechanisms in LHCII, each of which is associated with a different spectral signature and whose contribution to qE is determined by environmental control of protein conformational disorder. Emission at 700nm is attributed to a conformational change in the Lut 2 domain, which is facilitated by the conformational change associated with the primary quenching mechanism involving Lut 1.

State transitions in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii strongly modulate the functional size of photosystem II but not of photosystem I

Plants and green algae optimize photosynthesis in changing light conditions by balancing the amount of light absorbed by photosystems I and II. These photosystems work in series to extract electrons from water and reduce NADP(+) to NADPH. Light-harvesting complexes (LHCs) are held responsible for maintaining the balance by moving from one photosystem to the other in a process called state transitions. In the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a photosynthetic model organism, state transitions are thought to involve 80% of the LHCs. Here, we demonstrate with picosecond-fluorescence spectroscopy on C. reinhardtii cells that, although LHCs indeed detach from photosystem II in state 2 conditions, only a fraction attaches to photosystem I. The detached antenna complexes become protected against photodamage via shortening of the excited-state lifetime. It is discussed how the transition from state 1 to state 2 can protect C. reinhardtii in high-light conditions and how this differs from the situation in plants.

Thermal and pH Stability of the B-Phycoerythrin from the Red Algae Porphyridium cruentum

Phycoerythrin is the major light-harvesting pigment-protein of the red algae Porphyridium cruentum and is widely used as fluorescent probe and analytical reagent. Additionally this protein has a potential application as natural dye in food industry. Nevertheless the knowledge of the functional properties of this alga protein is limited, hindering its application as food additive. In this article we report a biophysical characterization of B-phycoerythrin from Porphyridium cruentum (B-PE) in order to study its stability and spectral properties in a broad range of pHs. This information can help in its potential application as colorant in the food industry. Spectroscopic data obtained in this work show that B-PE has a stronger functional stability in the pH range 4.0–10.0, and Size Exclusion Chromatography suggests that the protein maintains a (αβ)6-γ oligomeric structure in that range of pHs. At pH 7.0, an apparent Tm value of 77.5 ± 0.5 °C was calculated. At this pH, the protein is highly stable with a loss of only 20 % of its spectral properties (absorbance and fluorescence) after 25 days at room temperature. These results indicate that B-PE is more stable in a broad range of pHs than other phycoerythrin proteins, which would facilitate its use in the food industry.

Inhomogeneous dephasing masks coherence lifetimes in ensemble measurements

An open question at the forefront of modern physical sciences is what role, if any, quantum effects may play in biological sensing and energy transport mechanisms. One area of such research concerns the possibility of coherent energy transport in photosynthetic systems. Spectroscopic evidence of long-lived quantum coherence in photosynthetic light-harvesting pigment protein complexes (PPCs), along with theoretical modeling of PPCs, has indicated that coherent energy transport might boost efficiency of energy transport in photosynthesis. Accurate assessment of coherence lifetimes is crucial for modeling the extent to which quantum effects participate in this energy transfer, because such quantum effects can only contribute to mechanisms proceeding on timescales over which the coherences persist. While spectroscopy is a useful way to measure coherence lifetimes, inhomogeneity in the transition energies across the measured ensemble may lead to underestimation of coherence lifetimes from spectroscopic experiments. Theoretical models of antenna complexes generally model a single system, and direct comparison of single system models to ensemble averaged experimental data may lead to systematic underestimation of coherence lifetimes, distorting much of the current discussion. In this study, we use simulations of the Fenna-Matthews-Olson complex to model single complexes as well as averaged ensembles to demonstrate and roughly quantify the effect of averaging over an inhomogeneous ensemble on measured coherence lifetimes. We choose to model the Fenna-Matthews-Olson complex because that system has been a focus for much of the recent discussion of quantum effects in biology, and use an early version of the well known environment-assisted quantum transport model to facilitate straightforward comparison between the current model and past work. Although ensemble inhomogeneity is known to lead to shorter lifetimes of observed oscillations (simply inhomogeneous spectral broadening in the time domain), this important fact has been left out of recent discussions of spectroscopic measurements of energy transport in photosynthesis. In general, these discussions have compared single-system theoretical models to whole-ensemble laboratory measurements without addressing the effect of inhomogeneous dephasing. Our work addresses this distinction between single system and ensemble averaged observations, and shows that the ensemble averaging inherent in many experiments leads to an underestimation of coherence lifetimes in individual systems.