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BIOLOGY CHAPTER 13:

PHOTOSYNTHESIS
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Created Dec 27, 2020 1222 PM

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Chapter 13: Photosynthesis

What is photosynthesis?
→ Photosynthesis is a reaction in which light energy is converted to chemical
energy in the form of glucose. Oxygen is a waste product of this reaction and is
released into the atmosphere.

BIOLOGY CHAPTER 13 PHOTOSYNTHESIS 1

 → Occurs in chloroplasts

Two Stages of Photosynthesis

In the light dependent photosynthesis stage, the energy from the Sun hits
chlorophyll in the thylakoid membranes, water is split into hydrogen ions and
oxygen as a waste. Hydrogen ions is used to make ATP and NADPH which will
then be passed on to the light independent stage where it does not require any
light, the Calvin Cycle involved in will then take CO2 from the atmosphere and
uses the energy from ATP and NADPH to produce glucose.

1. The Light Depedent Reactions

→ Takes place on the thylakoids of the chloroplasts
Non-cyclic Photophosphorylation:

Involves both photosystem 1 and 2

Light hits the chlorophyll inside photosystem 2, the chlorophyll starts

vibrating and if it vibrates enough, that energy will be passed into its electron

That electron will become free from the chlorophyll molecule and that excited
electron moves up to a higher energy level and passed down an electron
transport chain, losing its energy as it goes

This energy is used to pump hydrogen ions across from the stroma into the
lumen of the thylakoids.

The electron then arrives to photosystem 1, however the electron has lost its
energy and it needs more light to re-excite that electron back up to a higher
energy level

It then gets eventually gets passed along down another electron transport
chain until it combines with NADP and results in NADPH

Now that we have lost an electron, water will be broken down through the
process of photolysis into an electron in photosystem 2, more hydrogen ions
and water as a waste product as it diffuses out of the cell.

BIOLOGY CHAPTER 13 PHOTOSYNTHESIS 2

 The concentrated hydrogen will then pass down the electrical chemical
gradient through ATP synthase turning ADP and phosphate into ATP.

→ Requires ADP and NADP for it to work, however too much sunlight exposure at
the end of a long day, the plant might be short in NADP, in this case it can switch
to an alternative to Cyclic Photophosphorylation.

Cyclic Photophosphorylation:

Starts off like Non-Cyclic up until the electron reaches photosystem 1

Since there is no NADP for the electron to be accepted, so this electron will
be passed all the way back to photosystem 2

It will get re-excited, passed back along, generating more hydrogen ions into
the lumen which can go through ATP synthase and generate ATP

Through this process, water is not needed because no replacement of

electron is required, no NADPH produced since there's no NADP, makes more
ATP, basically recycling the same electron over and over again.

2. The Light Independent Reactions

→ AKA The Calvin Cycle(dark reaction), is the final stage of photosynthesis which
does not require light, uses the ATP and NADPH from the light dependent stage
to produce glucose.

→ Occurs in the stroma of the chloroplasts.

There are 4 stages in the Calvin Cycle:

Carbon fixation:

RuBP5 Carbon sugar) combines with CO2 in a reaction called carbon fixation
catalyzed by the enzyme RUBISCO to give two molecules of glycerate 3
phosphate(three carbon compound)/ GP

Reduction Phase:

Each Gp molecule will then be reduced by NADPH and ATP to triose phosphate.

BIOLOGY CHAPTER 13 PHOTOSYNTHESIS 3

 Carbohydrate Formation:

1/6 of the triose phospshate is used to make glucose(every 6 cycles of the

Calvin cycle) which is then converted to essential organic compounds such as
polysaccharides, lipids, amino acids and nucleic acids.

Regeneration Phase:

The remaining 5/6 of the triose phosphates are used to regenerate RuBP.

Factors Necessary for Photosynthesis

→ The rate of photosynthesis is determined by limiting factors such as CO2
concentration, light intensity, light wavelength and temperature.

The rate of photosynthesis increases as these factors increases

However, at high light intensities and temperatures, the leaves can be

damaged and enzymes denature, this the rate is slowed.

C4 Plants
→ C4 Photosynthesis takes place in both the mesophyll cells and the bundle
sheath cells:

PEP reacts with carbon dioxide with the help of the enzyme PEP carboxylase
and forms a 4 carbon molecule called oxaloacetate which will then be
converted into malate(4C)

Malate would then be decarboxylated and turns into a pyruvate of 3C

Meanwhile the CO2 that has been removed from malate diffuses from the
mesophyll cells into the bundle sheath cells will be passed to RuBP catalyzed
by rubisco where the Calvin cycle starts and sugar is produced.

Photorespiration

BIOLOGY CHAPTER 13 PHOTOSYNTHESIS 4

 When RuBP binds with O2 instead of CO2

What happens during hot/dry season or environment?

Stomata closes to prevent water loss/dehydration

CO2 needed for light-independent reactions cannot enter

O2 needed for light-dependent reactions cannot leave

At high O2 concentration levels, rubisco attaches to O2 instead of CO2

CO2 is produced rather than fixed

The differences between C3 and C4 plants:

C3 Plants
The mesophyll cells are packed loosely throughout the leaf

Photosynthesis occurs only in the mesophyll cells

CO2 molecule acceptor is RuBP

The optimum temperature is 2025 degrees celsius (coursebook says 30

Higher chances of photorespiration in C3 plants

Stomata remains open even when they are being exposed to high
temperature

The first stable compound is the "3 phospho glyceric acid(PGA)"

Examples: Rice and Sunflowers are C3 plants

C4 Plants
Mesophyll cells are wrapped tightly around the vascular bundle in a ring-like
form

BIOLOGY CHAPTER 13 PHOTOSYNTHESIS 5

 Photosynthesis occurs in both mesophyll and bundle sheath cells

CO2 molecule acceptor is PEPPhosphoenolpyruvate)

The optimum temperature is 3544 degrees celsius (coursebook says 45

Photorespiration does not happen at all

Stomata closes to prevent dehydration

The first stable compound is the 4C molecule called "oxaloacetate"

Examples: Sugarcane and Maize or corn are C4 plants.

BIOLOGY CHAPTER 13 PHOTOSYNTHESIS 6

 Trapping Light Energy
→ Chloroplasts contain several different pigments, and these different pigments
absorb different specific wavelengths of light.
Having multiple pigments allows the organism to capture more energy from the
Sun, compared to having just one pigment.

→ The photosynthetic pigments of higher plants form two groups:

Chlorophylls (primary pigments):

Chlorophyll a (yellow-green): absorbs light at 430nm and 663nm, is found

in all photosynthetic plants

Chlorophyll b (blue-green): absorbs light at 453nm-642nm

Carotenoids (accessory pigments):

β carotene (orange)

Xanthophyll (yellow)

BIOLOGY CHAPTER 13 PHOTOSYNTHESIS 7

 → Chlorophylls absorb mainly in the red and blue-violet regions of the light
spectrum. They reflect green light, which is why plants look green
→ An absorption spectrum: Is a graph of the absorbance of different
wavelengths of light by a pigment.
→ An action spectrum: Is a graph of the rate of photosynthesis at different
wavelengths of light.

→ The shorter the wavelength, the greater the energy it contains.

→ The technique used to separate chloroplast pigments is called
Chromatography.

BIOLOGY CHAPTER 13 PHOTOSYNTHESIS 8