This is a large (coffee table version) of the enzyme Photosystem II. While many enzymes do some very interesting chemistries, few have ever altered the actual environment at a planetary scale in the same manner that this enzyme has done. It is responsible for converting the atmosphere of the earth into an oxygen environment by using light energy to split water, generating oxygen gas as a by-product. This model shows most of the scaffold segment of the protein that houses the chlorophylls, the oxygen evolving complex, and the plastoquinones.

The structure is based on the 3WU2 protein data bank crystal structure. The model was manipulated in VMD, transferred to Tinkercad, where it was cleaned and the supports added. This will take more than a week of printer time. I do not recommend scaling it to something smaller. There are eight (8) sections that must be glued together to make the entire model. Each section will fit within the build plate volume of a Makerbot Replicator 5th Generation 3D printer.

MakerBot

MakerBot Replicator (5th Generation)

Yes

Yes

Medium

20%

The makerbot print setting provide a sufficient scaffold. Sometimes I have to make minor fixes to parts based on minor printer errors. This will take you several weeks to print, hours to clean up, and several weeks if you want to paint it. However, when completed, it is pretty cool, and even stands on its own. I plan to use this in various courses and presentations I do related to biochemistry and protein structure. It is the largest model I have built to date.

I painted the alpha helixes using tangerine enamal paint, and the beta sheets (minimal) using turquoise. The rest of the atoms are painted using standard conventional colors. My braces I painted steel. You will have to download the pdb file and look at the model to determine what atoms of the cofactors are what. I plan to make some videos of this at some point as well.