photosynthesis

Examples of photosynthesis in the following topics:

• Main Structures and Summary of Photosynthesis

  • The process of photosynthesis occurs in a middle layer called the mesophyll.
  • The basic equation for photosynthesis is deceptively simple.
  • Oxygen is generated as a waste product of photosynthesis.
  • Photosynthesis takes place in the mesophyll.
  • Describe the main structures involved in photosynthesis and recall the chemical equation that summarizes the process of photosynthesis

• The Purpose and Process of Photosynthesis

  • The process of photosynthesis converts light energy to chemical energy, which can be used by organisms for different metabolic processes.
  • All of this energy can be traced back to the process of photosynthesis and light energy from the sun.
  • Photosynthesis is essential to all life on earth.
  • The importance of photosynthesis is not just that it can capture sunlight's energy.
  • Therefore, photosynthesis powers 99 percent of Earth's ecosystems.

• The Energy Cycle

  • CO2 is no more a form of waste than oxygen is wasteful to photosynthesis.
  • Photosynthesis absorbs light energy to build carbohydrates in chloroplasts, and aerobic cellular respiration releases energy by using oxygen to metabolize carbohydrates in the cytoplasm and mitochondria.
  • Photosynthesis consumes carbon dioxide and produces oxygen.
  • These two powerhouse processes, photosynthesis and cellular respiration, function in biological, cyclical harmony to allow organisms to access life-sustaining energy that originates millions of miles away in the sun.
  • Photosynthesis consumes carbon dioxide and produces oxygen.

• CAM and C4 Photosynthesis

  • Photosynthesis in desert plants has evolved adaptations that conserve water.
  • Because stomata must open to allow for the uptake of CO2, water escapes from the leaf during active photosynthesis.
  • Some plants such as cacti can prepare materials for photosynthesis during the night by a temporary carbon fixation and storage process, because opening the stomata at this time conserves water due to cooler temperatures.
  • In addition, cacti have evolved the ability to carry out low levels of photosynthesis without opening stomata at all, a mechanism for surviving extremely dry periods.
  • The harsh conditions of the desert have led plants like these cacti to evolve variations of the light-independent reactions of photosynthesis.

• The Two Parts of Photosynthesis

  • Light-dependent and light-independent reactions are two successive reactions that occur during photosynthesis.
  • Photosynthesis takes place in two stages: light-dependent reactions and the Calvin cycle (light-independent reactions).

• Metabolism of Carbohydrates

  • Plants build carbohydrates using light energy from the sun (during the process of photosynthesis), while animals eat plants or other animals to obtain carbohydrates.
  • Plants and some other types of organisms produce carbohydrates through the process called photosynthesis.
  • During photosynthesis, plants convert light energy into chemical energy by building carbon dioxide gas molecules (CO2) into sugar molecules like glucose.
  • The synthesis of glucose by photosynthesis is described by this equation (notice that it is the reverse of the previous equation):

• Protists as Primary Producers, Food Sources, and Symbionts

  • In turn, the corals provide the protists with a protected environment and the compounds needed for photosynthesis.
  • The protists themselves and their products of photosynthesis are essential, directly or indirectly, to the survival of organisms ranging from bacteria to mammals .
  • (On land, terrestrial plants serve as primary producers. ) In fact, approximately one-quarter of the world's photosynthesis is conducted by protists, particularly dinoflagellates, diatoms, and multicellular algae.

• The Evolution of Plastids

  • Plastids may derive from cyanobacteria engulfed via endosymbiosis by early eukaryotes, giving cells the ability to conduct photosynthesis.
  • Chloroplasts are plastids that conduct photosynthesis.
  • Unlike most prokaryotes, however, they have extensive, internal membrane-bound compartments called thylakoids, which contain chlorophyll and are the site of the light-dependent reactions of photosynthesis .
  • The chloroplasts contained within the green algal endosymbionts are capable of photosynthesis, making chlorarachniophytes photosynthetic.

• Abiotic Factors Influencing Plant Growth

  • It principally occurs through the process of photosynthesis, which uses light as its source of energy, but it also occurs through chemosynthesis, which uses the oxidation or reduction of chemical compounds as its source of energy.
  • Environments with the greatest amount of biomass have conditions in which photosynthesis, plant growth, and the resulting net primary productivity are optimized.
  • Photosynthesis can proceed at a high rate, enzymes can work most efficiently, and stomata can remain open without the risk of excessive transpiration.

• Movement of Water and Minerals in the Xylem

  • The leaf contains many large intercellular air spaces for the exchange of oxygen for carbon dioxide, which is required for photosynthesis.
  • Stomata must open to allow air containing carbon dioxide and oxygen to diffuse into the leaf for photosynthesis and respiration.
  • Therefore, plants must maintain a balance between efficient photosynthesis and water loss.
  • Photosynthesis takes place in the stem, which also stores water.