Module 4

Photosynthesis

What this module is about

Many people would like to live in places full of plants. Why? The place is always
cool; it is less dusty and it has abundant water supply. Plants are great food providers. How
do plants make food? The food-making process of plants is the main concern of this
module. The module includes the following lessons:

Lesson 1 The Sunlight

Lesson 2 The Leaf
Lesson 3 Chloroplast and Photosynthetic Pigments
Lesson 4 Light-dependent Reaction
Lesson 5 Light-independent Reaction

What you are expected to learn

After going through this module, you are expected to:

1. Name the factors important to the food-making process.

2. Describe the chloroplast.
3. Name the pigments and describe how pigments are organized in order to trap
sunlight efficiently.
4. Differentiate light-dependent reaction from light-independent reaction of
photosynthesis.
5. Correlate the internal structure of the leaves to the food-making process of plants.

How to learn from this module

Heres a simple guide for you in going about the module:

1. Read the instruction carefully.

2. Take the pretest before reading the rest of the module.
3. Do all activities and exercises.
 4. Use the concepts discussed in each lesson to explain the results of the activities
or exercises.
5. Take the posttest after you have finished the lessons and performed all activities
or exercises.

What to do before (Pretest)

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. The color of the leaves is green. This means that the green light is
a. absorbed c. reflected
b. deflected d. transmitted

2. Which of the following substances is the origin of oxygen released as oxygen gas by
green plants during photosynthesis?
a. water c. carbon dioxide
b. sugar d. ribulose-1,5-biphosphate

3. Which of the following gases is important to photosynthesis?

a. ozone gas c. water vapor
b. oxygen gas d. carbon dioxide

4. In which of the following cellular organelles does photosynthesis occur?

a. ribosome c. chlorophyll
b. chloroplast d. mitochondrion

5. Pigments are needed by plants to trap energy from the sun. Which of the following is the
most important pigment for trapping energy?
a. carotenoid c. chlorophyll b
b. xanthophylls d. chlorophyll a

6. The final acceptor of the electron during noncyclic electron pathway is

a. photosystem I c. ATP
b. photosystem II d. NADP+

7. What is the temperature in which ribulose biphosphate carboxylase utilizes oxygen gas?
a. below 30 oC c. above 30 oC
o
b. at 30 C d. undetermined

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8. What is the special chlorophyll pigment that serves as primary reaction center of
photosystem I?
a. P 700 c. carotene
b. P 680 d. xanthophylls

9. Where do we find the water splitting mechanism of the light dependent reaction of
photosynthesis?
a. photosystem I c. primary reaction center
b. photosystem II d. has not been identified

10. Which of the following substances screened out the high-energy components of solar
energy and prevented it from reaching the surface of the earth?
a. carbon dioxide c. ozone
b. cloud d. water

11. Which of the following rays of light has the lowest energy content?
a. blue c. red
b. green d. yellow

12. Which of the following components of the solar energy has the shortest wavelength?
a. ultraviolet rays c. violet light
b. visible light d. gamma rays

13. How do you call the sack-like structure in the chloroplast?

a. stroma c. matrix
b. thylakoid d. granum

14. Where does the light-independent reaction occur?

a. stroma c. lamella
b. grannum d. thylakoid

15. How do you call the organization of photosynthetic pigments?

a. photosystem c. electron transport chain
b. water-splitting complex d. light harvesting antennae

16. Which of the following is the first stable product of photosynthesis?

a. pyruvic acid c. phosphoglyceraldehyde
b. phosphoglyceric acid d. ribulose-1,5-biphosphate

17. What is the enzyme that plays an important role in carbon dioxide fixation?
a. phosphatase c. ribulose-1,5-biphosphate
b. ribulose-1,5-oxygenase d. phosphoenol pyruvate carboxylase

18. Landscaping is a very lucrative business today. Which of the following plants can be
planted in sunlit ground of a house or building?
a. bermuda c. carabao grass
b. peanut grass d. all of them

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19. Light-dependent reaction of photosynthesis must come first step before the light-
independent reaction because its products are important to the fixation of carbon
dioxide. Which of the following is/are the product/s of light dependent reaction?
a. ADP only c. NADPH only
b. ATP only d. NADPH and ATP

20. Which plants grow well in the tropics like the Philippines?
a. rice c. pineapple
b. pine tree d. a and c

Key to answers on page 26.

Be familiar with the following terms:

Terms Definition
Pigment Colored substance present in plants
Light-dependent Process which occurs in the presence of
light
Light-independent Process which does not require light
Carbon dioxide fixation Process which converts carbon dioxide
into carbohydrate
Cyclic photophosphorylation Production of ATP in a cyclic manner
Non-cyclic photophosphorylation Production of ATP in Z-pathway
Photorespiration Process wherein oxygen gas competes
with carbon dioxide in reacting with
ribulose-1,5-biphosphate
z-pathway Is the pathway followed by excited
electrons from photosystem II. It is a non-
cyclic flow of electron.
Photosystem Organization of pigments
C3 plant Plant that fixes CO2 to yield 3-carbon
phosphoglyceraldehyde as the first stable
product of photosynthesis
C4 plant Plant that fixes CO2 -4-carbon malate
when temperature is above 30 o C
CAM plant Plant in arid environment wherein CO2 is
fixed at night and released to Calvin
Cycle at day time
Variegated leaf A leaf with patches or margins that are
not colored green

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Lesson 1. Sunlight

All processes that occur in living and non-living systems require energy.
Photosynthesis is no exception. The energy that comes from the sun is called solar energy.
It travels as wave and is described in terms of its energy content and its wavelength. It
comes as discrete packets called photons. The component of solar energy that is important
to photosynthesis is the visible light. Visible light is a white light. What makes up the visible
light? Discover it as you perform the activity below.

What you will do

Activity 1.1 Components of the visible light

What you need: prism

white paper
light source

Procedure:

1. Arrange the three objects as shown below

light source prism white paper

2. Switch the light source on and focus the light into the prism.
3. What do you see in the white paper that serves as screen? Describe it.
4. Draw what you see on the white paper
Key to answers on page 26.

When you focused the

light into the prism, you saw a
rainbow of colors in the white
paper similar to Figure 1. The
visible light broke up into violet,
blue, blue-green, green, yellow-
green, yellow, orange and red.

Figure 1
Components of solar energy

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 The components of solar energy before the visible light have short
wavelengths such as gamma rays, x-rays and ultraviolet rays. You do not see them. Short-
wavelength components have more energy. Those components after the visible light have
long wavelength. These are also invisible to our naked eyes. They possess less energy.

Only 42 % of the solar energy passes through the atmosphere and reaches the earth.
High energy, short wavelengths are screened out by ozone and the lower energy long
wavelengths are screened out by water and carbon dioxide in air. Only 2 % of the light that
reaches the earth is utilized in photosynthesis.

What you will do

Self-Test 1.1

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. Which of the following components of solar energy has long wavelength?

a. gamma rays c. microwaves
b. visible light d. radiowaves

2. Which of the following components of solar energy has the most energy?
a. visible light c. ultraviolet rays
b. infrared rays d. violet light

3. Which of the following screens out low energy wavelengths of the solar energy?
a. water c. carbon dioxide
b. ozone d. carbon dioxide and water

Key to answers on page 26.

Lesson 2. The Leaf

Plant leaves absorb sunlight to manufacture plant sugars through a process called
photosynthesis. In order to get enough light, leaf surfaces are flattened to have a big area
as shown in Figure 2. Let us do Activity 2.1 to get a closer view of the external structure of
plant leaves.

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Figure 2. Leaf Parts

 The blade is a thin expanded structure
on either side of the midrib and is the largest
part of the leaf. The leaf is attached to the
stem by a petiole. The base of the petiole is
attached to the node of the stem. The node
where a petiole meets a stem is called a leaf
axil. The axil contains single buds or bud
clusters, referred to as axillary buds. You can
also see a pair of appendages at the base of
the petiole called stipules. Stipules protect
the young leaf and may be modified into
Figure 2. Leaf Parts spines or tendrils.

What you will do

Activity 2.1 Leaf Characteristics

What you need: Notebook and pencil

What to do:

1. You may have a garden, park or farm in your place. Visit the farm, garden or
park.
2. Note the different characteristics of the leaf of the plants you may find in the place.
Key to answers on page 26

From your visit to the park, garden or farm, you must have seen several leaf
characteristics. Most of these characteristics make leaves very efficient in trapping energy
from the sun, which in turn, increases the photosynthetic activity of the leaves. Some of
these characteristics are the following:

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 Leaf structure

Simple leaves have a single blade. Compound leaves have more than one blade
on a single petiole. The multiple blades of a
compound leaf are called leaflets.

Leaf Attachment

Petiolate Sessile
The blade is attached to the stem by a petiole The blade is attached directly to the stem
without a petiole.

Leaf Arrangement

Two leaves grow opposite One leaf grows at each node. Several leaves grow around a
each other at each node. The leaves alternate sides single node.
along the stem.

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 Leaf Shape

Narrow from Oval-shaped Wide at the base Heart-shaped Deeply lobed like the
base to tip and narrow at the fingers of a hand
tip

Leaf Margins

The edge of the leaf The edge has The edge of the leaf The edge of the leaf is
is smooth. rounded indentations is finely toothed. deeply indented.

Where does photosynthesis occur in the leaf of plants? You shall do Activity 2.2 to
find out which parts of the leaves are involved in photosynthesis.

What you will do

Activity 2.2 Where does photosynthesis happen?

What you need: petri dish iodine solution any variegated leaf
ethyl alcohol 200 mL beaker alcohol lamp
tripod wire gauze water
water bath medicine dropper

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What you will do:

1. Get a variegated leaf.

2. Draw this leaf and indicate the patches or margins that are not colored green
3. Place the leaf in a beaker with water and boil the leaf to remove the water-soluble
red and blue pigments.
4. Replace the water with ethyl alcohol, place the beaker in a water bath and apply
heat. Be careful because the alcohol is volatile.
5. Pour out the alcohol, replace it with water and apply heat.
6. Spread out the leaf free of pigments carefully in a petri dish.
7. Cover the leaf with a few drops of iodine solution.
8. Observe.
9. A blue black or dark purple coloration in the leaf indicates the presence of starch.
10. Draw the leaf. Darken the parts of the leaf you observed to contain starch.
11. Compare the second drawing of the leaf with the first drawing you made.

Iodine solution is a test for starch. In the activity, the green part of the leaf turned
blue black in the presence of iodine solution. This indicated that starch was present. The
green part of the leaf carried out photosynthesis. This observation was not observed in the
non-green part. Photosynthesis did not happen in the non-green part because there was no
starch, an indicator of photosynthesis. Clearly, photosynthesis occurs only in the green
parts of the plants such as the green leaves and the green stems of cactus.

Have you ever asked yourself what is inside the leaf that makes it a site for food
production? Figure 3 shows the inside of the leaf.

In Figure 3, you can

see layers of cells sandwiched
by the lower and upper
epidermis. This is called
mesophyll layer, which is
composed of palisade cells
(arranged like columns) and
spongy cells (loosely arranged
cells). These cells have
organelles that contain green
pigments. These organelles
are called chloroplasts.
Chloroplasts contain pigments
that trap energy from the sun.
Figure 3. The inside of the leaf

At the lower epidermis, you will see some openings. Each opening is called stoma
(stomata). This is where carbon dioxide enters and oxygen passes out. We shall look at
the structure of the stoma. Perform Activity 2.3.

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 What you will do
Activity 2.3 Observing the Stomata

What you need: leaf glass slide

forceps water
microscope

What you will do:

1. Fold a leaf in half until it cracks.

2. Tear the leaf so that a part of the lower layer of cells appears as narrow, colorless
border along the torn edge.
3. Remove a portion of the lower layer of cells with a pair of forceps.
4. Put the portion of the lower layer of cells in a glass slide. Add a drop of water.
5. Examine the slide under the low power objective.
6. Do you see some openings?

This is what you are supposed to see - the

stoma, a slit-like structure. Around the
Guard cell stoma is a pair of bean-shaped cells called
guard cells. The guard cell is an
Stoma
epidermal cell with chloroplast. It is the
only epidermal cell that can carry out
photosynthesis. It regulates the opening
and the closing of the stoma.

Figure 4. The guard cell

What you will do

Self-Test 2.1

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. The main photosynthetic organ in the plant is the:

a. stem c. leaves
b. root d. flower

2. Which of the following organelles traps energy from the sun?

a. epidermis c. chloroplast
b. cuticle d. chlorophyll

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3. Where do we find cells with chloroplasts in the leaves of plants?
a. mesophyll layer c. epidermis
b. cuticle d. matrix

4. Cactus makes food through its

a. leaves c. roots
b. stems d. flowers

5. Where do we find most of the stomata?

a. upper epidermis c. lower epidermis
b. mesophyll layer d. spongy layer

Key to answers on page 26.

Lesson 3. The Chloroplast and Other Photosynthetic Pigments

Many people find fulfillment by just looking at plants. Why? You see a myriad of
colors in plants violet, lavender, red, white, pink. These colored parts of plants are due to
pigments. Pigments are chemical compounds, which reflect only certain wavelengths of
visible light. This makes them appear "colorful". Flowers, corals, and even animal skin
contain pigments, which give them their colors. Most leaves are green. Do you think leaves
contain green pigments only? To answer this question, do activity 3.1

What you will do

Activity 3.1 How many kinds of pigments are there in green leaves?

What you need: alcohol beaker

mortar and pestle 1 piece of chalk
2 pieces of green leaves

What you will do:

1. Get 2 pieces of leaves and clean them thoroughly.

2. Place the leaves in a mortar and pound with pestle along with grains of sand.
3. Add enough alcohol to cover the mixture.
4. Continue pounding until enough pigments are extracted.
5. Decant the extract into the beaker.
6. Dip a new piece of chalk into the extract and allow the extract to sip into the chalk.
7. Observe the piece of chalk. How many bands of colors do you see in it?

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 As you can see in the piece of chalk, it is not only the green pigment that is present in
a green leaf. There are other pigments.

Pigments also absorb light rays of certain wavelength. In plants, algae, and
cyanobacteria, pigments capture the energy of sunlight and use it in photosynthesis. Each
pigment absorbs only certain rays of light. Plants possess several kinds of pigments. What
are the different pigments that are important for photosynthesis? There are three basic
groups of plant pigments.

Chlorophylls are green pigments, which contain a ring that allows electrons to
move freely so the molecule can gain or lose electrons easily. There are several
kinds of chlorophylls chlorophyll a is present in plants, algae and cyanobacteria;
chlorophyll b is present in green algae and plants; and chlorophyll c is found only
in photosynthetic diatoms, kelps and dinoflagellates.

Carotenoids are usually red, orange, or yellow pigments. These compounds are
composed of two small six-carbon rings connected by a "chain" of carbon atoms.
They do not dissolve in water. Carotenoids absorb energy and pass it to
chlorophyll. Carotenoid is an accessory pigment. An example of carotenoid is
fucoxanthin, a brown pigment which colors brown algae like kelps and diatoms
brown. Carotenoids also include carotene, which gives carrots their color.

Phycobilins are water-soluble pigments, and are found in the cytoplasm, or in the
stroma of the chloroplast. They occur only in Cyanobacteria and Rhodophyta.
Phycocyanin (present in cyanobacteria) and phycoerythrin (found in red algae)
are examples of phycobilins.

Within the thylakoid, pigments form clusters of 2-3 pigment molecules arranged
around a pair of chlorophyll-a molecules. Some proteins are also found in this cluster. We
call this cluster a photosystem. The outer pigments of the photosystem act like an antenna
shuttling photons into chlorophyll-a in the reaction center.

There are two photosystems photosystem I and photosystem II. Photosystem I

absorbs red light at about 700 nanometer (nm) and its primary reaction center is the special
chlorophyll called P 700. Photosystem II absorbs more orange light at 680 nm and its
primary reaction center is the special chlorophyll called P 680. A water-splitting complex is
associated with Photosystem II.

Where can we find the photosynthetic pigments? They are housed inside the
chloroplast. Do Activity 3.2 to see the chloroplast of a leaf.

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 What you will do
Activity 3.2 Observing chloroplast

What you need: microscope glass slide

Hydrilla water

What will you do:

1. Get a hydrilla plant and place it in a wide-mouthed bottle.

2. Expose to sunlight for 15 minutes.
3. Detach healthy green leaf near the apex and mount it on water in a glass slide.
4. Examine the leaf under the low power objective and high power objective of the
microscope
5. Do you see compartments? What is the shape of each compartment?
6. Observe the coin shape chloroplasts moving along with the cytoplasm.

Under the microscope you see compartments. In these compartments, you will notice
some green bodies. These green bodies are the chloroplasts.

We shall describe the structure of the chloroplast. A chloroplast is enclosed by a

double membrane an outer membrane and an inner membrane. The outer membrane is
smooth while the inner membrane is thrown into tube like structures. Between these
membranes is a space called intermembrane compartment. Next to the inner membrane is
a space called stroma. Stroma contains a complex mixture of enzymes and water.
Embedded in the stroma is a complex network of stacked sacs.

inner membrane

intermembrane
space

outer membrane

Figure 5. The chloroplast

Each stack is called a granum (grana). A granum is made up of flattened sacs called
thylakoid. The photosynthetic pigments are found in thylakoids. Figure 5 is a typical
structure of a chloroplast.

One granum is connected to another through stromal lamella. A chloroplast contains

40-60 grana. A granum may have two or three hundred thylakoids.

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 What you will do
Self-Test 3.1

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. Where do we find the chlorophyll in the chloroplast?

a. stroma c. intermembrane compartment
b. thylakoid d. carotenes

2. What can we find in the stroma of the chloroplast?

a. enzymes c. chlorophyll
b. carotenes d. thykoid

3. Which of the following pigments is an accessory pigment?

a. chlorophyll a c. P 680
b. P 700 d. carotenoid

4. The water-splitting complex is associated with which photosystem?

a. photosystem I c. both a and b
b. photosystem II

5. How do you call the space between the outer and the inner membrane?
a. stroma c. intermembrane compartment
b. thylakoid compartment d. stromal lamella

6. What makes up a granum?

a. stromal lamella c. thykoid
b. stroma d. none of these

Key to answers on page 26.

Lesson 4. The Light-dependent Reaction

Light-dependent reaction is the first phase of photosynthesis. In the previous lesson,

we learned that pigment molecules form clusters called photosystems. The outer pigments
serve as antennae for collecting solar energy. The energy is passed from pigment to
pigment until it is concentrated at the special chlorophyll a (P 700 in PS I and P 680 in PS
II), a part of the primary reaction center. The electrons become so excited that they escape
as shown in Figure 6.

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 In PS 1, the excited electrons follow a
cyclic path. You can see this in Figure 7. The
electrons that escaped from the chlorophyll
enter the electron transport system, a series of
electron carriers. At the electron transport
system, electrons are passed from one carrier
to the next. In the process, energy is released
and is used to pump hydrogen ions from
stroma to thylakoid compartment. The amount
of hydrogen ions in the thylakoid has potential
energy.
Figure 6. Photosystem
The electrons left the electron transport
system with very low energy. The low- energy
electrons return to PS I and repeat the cycle
when the system absorbs solar energy.

What will happen to the hydrogen ions

that possess potential energy? They flow from
high concentration to low concentration,
through a special protein called ATP
synthetase complex.

As hydrogen ions flow from inside of

thylakoid to the stroma, ATP is synthesized.
The direction of the flow is shown in Figure 8.
Figure 7
Cyclic electron flow involving PS I
ADP + P ATP + H20

Since ATP is synthesized in the

presence of light, the cyclic electron flow is
also called cyclic photophosphorylation.

Excited electrons may also follow a non-

cyclic electron flow as shown in Figure 9.
When does an excited electron follow a non-
cyclic path? If PS II antenna complex absorbs
solar energy, the high-energy electrons leave
the reaction center- where chlorophyll a
molecules are found and enter the electron
transport system. Here, energy is released as
electrons are passed from one carrier to
another. The released energy is stored in the
Figure 8
Hydrogen ions leave the thylakoid

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form of Hydrogen ion gradient. This gradient is used by enzyme, ATP synthase complex, to
drive the synthesis of ATP.

Figure 9. The non-cyclic flow of electrons

ADP + P ----- ATP + H 20

As you can see in Figure 9, the low-energy electrons move from the electron
transport system to PS I where they gain energy when the pigments absorb solar energy.
The excited electrons are passed to an electron carrier. The electron carriers send the
energized electrons to oxidized nicotinamide dinucleotide phosphate (NADP +), also an
electron carrier. Together with the electron, NADP + picks up hydrogen ion from water to
become NADPH.

This non-cyclic electron flow is also called Z-pathway or non-cyclic

photophosphorylation.

The electrons lost at PS II are replenished by a reaction involving water. Water splits
in the presence of light. This is called photolysis. It happens at a system associated with
PS II.

H20 H+ + 2e- + O2

The synthesis of ATP through cyclic or non-cyclic photophosphorylation is tied up to

the hydrogen ion gradient. This mechanism of ATP production is called chemiosmosis.

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 The products of light-dependent reactions are ATP and NADPH. Cyclic
photophosphorylation produces ATP only. Non-cyclic photophosphorylation produces ATP
and NADPH. The by-product is oxygen gas, which comes from water and is released into
the atmosphere.

What you will do

SelfTest 4.1

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. Light-dependent reaction occurs in

a. stroma c. thylakoid compartment
b. thylakoid membrane d. intermembrane compartment

2. To store the energy of excited electrons is to pump Hydrogen ions from ___________
and into ___________
a. outside the cell, stroma
b. stroma, thylakoid compartment
c. thylakoid compartment, stroma
d. intermembrane compartment, outside the cell

3. The following are produced during light-dependent reaction except

a. ATP c. NADPH
b. sugar d. oxygen

4. The cyclic pathway of photophosphorylation produces

a. ATP only c. ATP and NADPH
b. NADPH only d. organic sugars only

5. Which of the following replaces the electrons that escape from PS II?
a. PS I c. splitting of water
b. NADPH d. the three are correct

Key to answers on page 26.

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Lesson 5. Light- Independent Reaction / Carbon Dioxide Fixation

What do plants do with the products of light-dependent reaction ATP and NADPH?
These two substances are high-energy molecules. The energy could be harnessed in
making food out of carbon dioxide. How do plants fix carbon dioxide into food?

First carbon dioxide enters the leaf

through the stomata. It goes into the
mesophyll layers and moves to the
stroma of the chloroplast. Here,
carbon dioxide collides with 5-carbon
compound called ribulose-1, 5-
biphosphate (RUBP) to yield 6-
carbon-containing sugar. The process
is catalyzed by RUBP carbonxylase.
CO2

RUBP 2 6-carbon compound

H2O

The 6-carbon compound is

broken into two molecules of
3-carbon sugar,
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phosphoglycerate (PGA).
This requires two molecules of
ATP.
6-carbon compounds 2 PGA

The 2 molecules of PGA are

converted into 2 molecules of
phosphoglyceraldehyde
(PGAL), a 3-carbon
compound. PGAL is the first
stable product of
photosynthesis. It needs 2
molecules of NADPH.

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 2 ATP 2 ADP + 2 Pi

2 PGA 2 PGAP 2 PGAL

2 NADPH 2 NADP+

RUBP is regenerated from

PGAL for the process to
continue. A molecule of ATP
is needed for the regeneration
process.
3 ATP 3 ADP + 3 Pi
5 PGAL 3 RUBP

The process occurs in a cyclic manner as shown in Figure 10. Since the first stable
product is composed of 3 carbon atoms, it is called C3 Cycle. Melvin Calvin unlocked this
process. It is also named as Calvin Cycle.

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 Figure 10. The Calvin Cycle

Three turns of Calvin Cycle

are necessary to produce one
net gain of PGAL. Five PGAL
molecules are needed to
regenerate 3 molecules of
RUBP. The three turns use up
9 molecules of ATP and 6
molecules of NADPH.
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 PGAL is a substance used
by plants to make other
organic substances. An
example of these organic
substances synthesized by
plants is glucose. To make
one glucose molecule, a 6-
carbon sugar, two molecules
of PGAL are linked. This
means six turns of Calvin
cycle.
Challenge Answer
If there are 6 rounds of Calvin
Cycle,

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 1. How many PGAL
molecules are synthesized? 12
2. How many PGAL molecules
molecules are used to 10
regenerate RUBP? molecules
3. How many ATP molecules
were used up to produce 1 18
glucose? molecules
4. How many NADPH
molecules were used up? 12
molecules

Do you understand now how the energy from the sun is utilized to produce the ATP
and NADPH during the light-dependent reaction?

The light-independent reaction occurs during daytime, but light is not used
directly.
What you will do
Self-Test 5.1

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. What is the point of entry of carbon dioxide into the inside of the leaves of plants?
a. palisade layer c. guard cells
b. spongy layer d. stomata

2. What substance is used to fix carbon dioxide during the light-independent reaction?
a. Malate c. ribulose-1,5-biphosphate
b. Oxaloacetate d. pyruvate

3. What enzyme catalyzes the reaction in question 2?

a. Ribulose-1,5- biphosphate carboxylase
b. Ribulose-1,5- biphosphate oxygenase
c. Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase

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 d. Protease

4. What is the first stable product of photosynthesis?

a. PGA c. malate
b. PGAL d. oxaloacetate

5. How many PGAL are used to regenerate three molecules of RUBP?

a. 2 c. 5
b. 3 d. 6
Key to answers on page 26.

From Lesson 2, we learned that stomata are present in the plant leaves especially at
the underside. Water passes out and carbon dioxide enters the leaves through these
openings. When the day is hot and dry, the stomata close to prevent water loss. The
closure causes the build up of oxygen, but the available carbon dioxide is exhausted. When
this happens, oxygen gas competes with carbon dioxide in reacting with RUBP. This
produces a 2-carbon molecule. These 2-carbon molecules are broken down to carbon
dioxide and water. We call this process as photorespiration. Photorespiration makes
photosynthesis inefficient because carbon dioxide is not fixed and ATP molecules are used
up.

To escape photorespiration, alternative ways of fixing carbon dioxide evolved in

plants. One pathway is called C4 cycle. Carbon dioxide interacts with phosphoenolpyruvate
(PEP) to form oxaloacetate, a 4-carbon compound. The process is catalyzed by
phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase.
Oxaloacetate is converted to malate, also a 4-carbon compund. Malate is pumped
into the bundle sheath cells. Once here, carbon dioxide is released from malate.

Malate ---------- PEP + CO2

Free carbon dioxide enters Calvin Cycle. This process requires additional 12 ATP
molecules to produce one glucose molecule.

What will happen to PEP? It will go back to mesophyll cells to pick up another
carbon dioxide to repeat the cycle.

Many tropical grasses are C4 plants. Good examples of C 4 plants are crabgrass,
sugarcane, corn and Bermuda grass.

Another alternative way of fixing carbon dioxide has evolved in plants found in arid
regions such desert biome. Plants found in desert biomes belong to the family of
Crassulaceae, flowering succulent (water-laden). They fix carbon dioxide when the stomata
are closed.

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 PEP + CO2 -- 4 carbon compound

Examples of 4- carbon compounds are oxaloacetate and malate. These 4-Carbon

compounds are stored in large vacuoles in the mesophyll cells.

During the day, the stomata close. There is minimal loss of water but no CO 2. So,
the stored 4-Carbon compounds release CO 2 to Calvin Cycle to produce sugars. This
adaptation is called crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM). Plants that use CAM mechanism
of fixing CO2 are called CAM plants. Many epiphytes (hanging) and desert plants are CAM
plants. Good examples are pineapple and cactus.

This information is very important to agriculture and in landscaping business. Farm

owners and landscaping business operators would know what plants to be planted in
shaded and well-lighted area.

What you will do

Self-Test 5.2

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. Plants evolved alternative ways of fixing CO2. Why?

a. Oxygen gas at high temperature competes with CO2 in reacting with RUBP.
b. Most photosynthetic plants are present in hot areas.
c. The C3 cycle is not very efficient in making food.
d. The C4 cycle and CAM are very efficient.
2. When do CAM plants utilize CO2 to make sugar?
a. daytime c. anytime
b. nighttime

3. Which of the following uses C3 Cycle in making sugar?

a. pineapple c. cactus
b. crabgrass d. barley

4. Which of the following conditions leads to the adaptation of C4 and CAM pathways?
a. high CO2 and low O2 c. low CO2 and high O2
b. low O2 and High CO2 d. low CO2 and low O2

5. Which of the following pathways produces PGAL as precursor to carbohydrate

synthesis?
a. C3 d. CAM
b. C4
Key to answers on page 26.

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 Lets Summarize

1. Organisms that make food are called producers or autotroph. Autotrophs may be
photosynthetic or chemosynthetic.
2. Photosynthetic autotrophs use solar radiation to make food.
3. Not all components of solar energy is needed in photosynthesis. Photosynthesis
uses only the visible light.
4. Plant contains pigments that trap energy from the sun. These pigments form
clusters called photosystems.
5. There are two photosystems PS I and PS II. Photosystems are light harvesting
antenna composed of
several 100 chlorophyll a & b molecules, and carotenoids
a central chlorophyll molecule (P680 or P700)
specialized molecule called the primary electron acceptor
6. These pigments are found in the chloroplast. Chloroplasts are found in the leaves
of plant. They are found in the guard cell and mesophyll cells.
7. There are two stages of photosynthesis light dependent reaction and light-
independent reaction.
8. Light-dependent reaction produces ATP and NADPH
9. ATP and NADPH are used in the fixation of carbon dioxide, a light-independent
reaction.
10. There are three ways of fixing CO2 namely, C3 cycle, C4 cycle and CAM.
11. Due to the three pathways of carbon dioxide fixation, there are three kinds of
plants namely, C3 plants, C4 plants and CAM plants
Posttest

Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. What do we need in order to do work?

a. work place c. equipment
b. people d. energy

2. What do we call organisms that make food?

a. photosynthetic c. consumers
b. chemosynthetic d. a and b

3. Which of the following molecules is very energetic?

a. vitamins c. coenzyme
b. nucleic acid d. adenosine triphosphate

4. Which ray of light has the longest wavelength?

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 a. blue c. orange
b. indigo d. red

5. Which ray of light is most energetic?

a. blue c. orange
b. indigo d. red

6. Where does the oxygen gas released during photosynthesis come from?
a. water c. pigments
b. sugar d. carbon dioxide

7. Disk-shaped structures with photosynthetic pigments are known as

a. thylakoid c. chloroplast
b. granum d. stomata

8. What are the most common group of photosynthetic pigments in plants?

a. anthocyamin c. chlorophyll b
b. chlorophyll a d. chlorophyll c

9. Stroma are gel-like matrix (a solution) that surrounds the

a. chloroplast c. granum
b. chlorophyll d. none of the three

10. Which of the following substances is produced through cyclic phosphorylation?

a. ATP only c. ATP and NADPH
b. NADPH only d. sugar

11. Plants that use only the Calvin Cycle for photosynthesis are called
a. C3 plants c. CAM plants
b. C4 plants d. all three of them

12. CAM Plants can survive in dry, hot deserts because they can fix carbon at
a. daytime c. any time
b. nighttime

13. Which of the following is the by-product of photosynthesis?

a. water c. oxygen
b. sugar d. carbon dioxide

14. Photosynthesis occurs in what organelle of plants and algae?

a. plasma membrane c. lysosome
b. mitochondrion d. chloroplast

15. What are the light collecting units of the chloroplast?

a. pigments c. stroma
b. photosystem d. membranes

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16. A friend asks which of the following plants should be planted in a well-lighted area. What
is your answer?
a. rice c. cattleya
b. onion d. bermuda grass

17. Carbon fixing reactions occur in a pathway called the

a. light-dependent reaction b. light-independent reaction

18. Folded thylakoids that resemble stacks of pancakes are called

a. stroma c. granum
b. stromal lamella d. none of them

19. A five-carbon carbohydrate in the Calvin cycle is

a. PGAL c. RUBP
b. PGA

20. A three-carbon molecule in the Calvin cycle is

a. RUBP c. PGAL
b. malate

21. How many PGALs are needed to make one molecule of glucose?
a. 1 c. 3
b. 2 d. 4

Key to answers on page 27.

Key to Answers

Pretest
1. c 6. d 11. c 16. c
2. a 7. c 12. d 17. b
3. d 8. a 13. b 18. d
4. c 9. b 14. a 19. d
5. c 10. c 15. c 20. d

Lesson 1
Activity 1.1

A rainbow was observed when light passed through the prism. This means that the
visible light is composed of many colors of light.

Self-Test 1.1
1. d

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 2. c
3. b

Lesson 2

Activity 2.1

Only parts of the leaf that turn blue-black. This means that these parts manufactured
food.

Self-Test 2.1
1. c
2. c
3. a
4. b
5. c

Lesson 3 Lesson 4 Lesson 5

Self-Test 3.1 Self-Test 4.1 Self-Test 5.1 Self-Test 5.2

1. b 1. c 1. d 1. a
2. a 2. c 2. c 2. a
3. d 3. b 3. a 3. d
4. b 4. a 4. b 4. c
5. c 5. c 5. c 5. a
6. c
Posttest

1. d 6. a 11. a 16. d
2. d 7. a 12. b 17. b
3. d 8. c 13. c 18. c
4. d 9. c 14. d 19. c
5. a 10. a 15. c 20. c
21. b

References

Books:

Mader, S. (2003). Biology. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons.

Pickering, W.R. (2000). Complete biology. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press.

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Wolf, S. (2000). Molecular cell biology. Boston, MA: Addison Co.

Electronic sources:

http://www.emc.maricopa.edu/faculty/farabee/BIOBK/BioBookPS.html downloaded on
November 25, 2004.

http://ghs.gresham.k12.or.us/science/ps/sci/soph/energy/photosyn/pigments.htm
downloaded on November 26, 2004.

http://www.cat.cc.md.us/courses/bio141/lecguide/unit1/eustruct/phofig1.html downloaded on
November 30.

Kaiser, G. E. Doc Kaiser's Microbiology Home Page downloaded on November 30, 2004
http://fig.cox.miami.edu/~tkoop/spring00/blnphotosyn.html downloaded on December
1, 2004.

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