Photosynthesis

B I O L 1 0 1 | U N I T 2 | D R . L I N D S E Y FA R R I S

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Photosynthesis
• The conversion process that transforms the energy of sunlight into chemical energy
stored in sugars and other organic molecules
• Photosynthesis nourishes almost the entire world, directly or indirectly
• Occurs in plants, algae, certain protists, and some prokaryotes

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Autotrophs
• “Self-feeders”
• Sustain themselves without eating anything derived from other living beings
• Produce their organic molecules from CO2 and other inorganic raw materials
• Photoautotrophs use light as a source of energy to synthesize organic substances
• Chemoautotrophs extract energy from inorganic chemical compounds

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Heterotrophs
• Unable to make their own food, so they live on compounds produced by other
organisms
• The biosphere’s consumers
• Decomposers feed on the remains of other organisms or organic litter

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 PLANT ANATOMY

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 • Photosynthesis occurs in the
mesophyll
• Gas exchange occurs through
small openings called stomata
• In autotrophic eukaryotes,
photosynthesis occurs inside
chloroplasts

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[Link] 6
Chloroplasts
• The eukaryotic organelle that absorbs energy from sunlight and uses it to drive the
synthesis of organic compounds from CO2 and H2O
• All green parts of plants have chloroplasts, but the main site of photosynthesis is the leaf
• ~ 500,000 chloroplasts in a piece of leaf with a 1 mm2 surface area
• Found mainly in the cells of the mesophyll, the interior leaf tissue
• Derived from ancient free-living cyanobacteria

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 Chloroplast Anatomy

• 2 – 4 µm x 4 – 7 µm
• Two membranes
surrounding a dense
fluid called stroma
• Thylakoids hold
chlorophyll, the green
pigment of plants

[Link]
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 PHOTOSYNTHESIS

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Photosynthesis Equation
• All steps of photosynthesis are not completely understood, but the overall equation is
6 CO2 + 12 H2O + Light energy  C6H12O6 + 6 O2 + 6 H2O
• The overall chemical change is the reverse of the one during cellular respiration

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Photosynthesis is a Redox Process
• As water is split, its electrons are transferred with hydrogen ions from H2O to CO2,
reducing it to sugar
• The electrons increase in potential energy, making the process require energy or be
endergonic

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The Two Stages of Photosynthesis
• The equation for photosynthesis
gives a very simple summation
for a complex process
• It is comprised of two processes:
light reactions (photo) and the
Calvin cycle (synthesis)

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Light Reactions
• The steps of photosynthesis that convert solar energy to chemical energy
• Light absorbed by chlorophyll drives that transfer of e- and H+ from H2O to NADP+
• NADP+ is then reduced to NADPH
• ATP is also generated through photophosphorylation, the process of adding a phosphate
to ADP through chemiosmosis
• Occurs in the thylakoids

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The Calvin Cycle
• Begins by the incorporation of CO2 from the air into organic molecules in chloroplasts
through carbon fixation
• The fixed carbon is then reduced to carbohydrate by NADPH
• The part of photosynthesis where sugar is made
• Occurs in the stroma
• Does not need light to occur

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The Nature of Sunlight
• The sun emits a lot of
electromagnetic radiation which is
solar energy in a spectrum
• Solar energy travels in waves and the
amount of energy a wave has is
determined by its wavelength or
distance between consecutive waves

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Electromagnetic Spectrum
• The electromagnetic spectrum is
the range of possible frequencies
of radiation
• Visible light spans from 380 nm
to 740 nm
• The shorter the wavelength, the
greater the energy

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 Photosynthetic Pigments
• Pigments are substances that absorb light
• Different pigments absorb different wavelengths
• When a wavelength is absorbed, it disappears
• The colors we see are what is reflected or transmitted
by the pigment
• Spectrophotometers can be used to measure the
ability of a pigment to absorb wavelengths of light

[Link]
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Chloroplast Pigments
• There are three types of pigments in chloroplasts
• Chlorophyll a is the key light-capturing pigment that participates in light
reactions
• Chlorophyll b is an accessory pigment
• Carotenoids are hydrocarbon accessory pigments
• Absorb violet & blue-green light, reflect yellow/orange light
• Give photoprotection to plants by absorbing excess energy

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 Absorption
Spectra

Action
Spectrum

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 Chlorophyll a
&b

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 Carotenoids

β-Carotene

[Link] [Link]
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Photosystems
• Chlorophyll molecules are organized into complexes call photosystems with other
organic molecules and proteins
• A photosystem has a reaction-center complex surrounded by light-harvesting complexes
• The reaction-center complex is an organized association of proteins holding specific
chlorophyll a molecules that undergo oxidation upon excitation
• The light-harvesting complex consists of various pigment molecules bound to proteins

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 Photosystems

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Photosystems
• There are 2 types of photosystems in the thylakoid membrane that cooperate in the
light reactions of photosynthesis: photosystem II and photosystem I
• Each photosystem has a characteristic reaction-center complex
• PS II has a chlorophyll known as P680 because it is best at absorbing light at 680 nm
• PSI has a chlorophyll known as P700 because it is best at absorbing light at 700 nm
• The differences in wavelength are due to chlorophyll a association with different
proteins

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 LIGHT REACTIONS
CYCLIC A ND NON-CYCLIC

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 Cyclic Pathway
1. Photon strike pigment in L-H complex of PSII, e- “jump” until they reach P680 chlorophyll a at
R-C complex
2. P680 e- is transferred to primary e- acceptor
3. H2O is split, O2 is formed, H+ released into thylakoid space
4. An e- is passed from PSII to PSI via electron transport chain
5. Potential energy in proton gradient drives ATP production through chemiosmosis
6. PSI e- is passed from L-H complex to R-C complex, exciting P700 chlorophyll a
7. An e- is passed from PSI through a 2nd electron transport chain via ferredoxin
8. The e- is transferred from ferredoxin to NADP+, generating NADPH
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 Cyclic Electron Flow
• Sometimes, photoexcited e- can
take an alternative path called
cyclin electron flow
• Uses photosystem I ONLY
• No production of NADPH and no
release of oxygen

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The Calvin Cycle
• An anabolic process used to build carbohydrates from smaller molecules
• Occurs in the stroma
• Consumes energy
• Carbon enters as CO2 and leaves as sugar
• Light independent reactions
• Occurs in 3 phases

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 Phase 1: Carbon Fixation
• A molecule of CO2 combines with the 5-carbon
sugar, ribulose bisphosphate (RuBP) with the help
of the enzyme RuBP carboxylase-oxygenase or
rubisco
o Rubisco is the most abundant protein in
chloroplasts, and possibly on Earth
• The resulting 6-carbon intermediate is very
unstable and immediately splits into 2 molecules
of 3-phosphoglycerate

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 Phase 2: Reduction
• 3-phosphoglycerate receives an additional phosphate from ATP,
becoming 1,3-phosphoglycerate
• NADPH then reduces the carboxyl group of 1,3-
phosphoglycerate to an aldehyde
• 1,3- phosphoglycerate loses a phosphate group as its reduced,
generating glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate (G3P)
• For every molecule CO2, 2 molecules of G3P are formed

[Link]
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Phase 3: Regeneration of RuBP
• A complex series of reactions rearranges the carbon skeletons of 5 G3P molecules into 3
RuBP molecules
• Now, RuBP is prepared to receive CO2 again, continuing the cycle

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 1 cycle = 2 G3P
NOT enough to make
1 sugar & RuBP

6 cycles = 12 G3P
2 for 1 sugar
10 for 6 RuBP

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 ALTERNATIVE MECHANISMS OF
CARBON FIXATION

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Photorespiration
• In normal plants or C3 plants, the initial fixation of carbon occurs via rubisco
• Requires open stomata for gas exchange
• Stomata close on hot, dry days, and the plants produce less sugar
• As CO2 becomes scarce, rubisco bind O2 instead, resulting in a 2-carbon compound
• Peroxisomes and mitochondria rearrange and split the 2-carbon compound, releasing
CO2 through a process called photorespiration
• Photorespiration uses ATP and produces no sugar

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C4 Plants
• Preface the Calvin cycle with an alternative mode of carbon fixation that forms a 4-
carbon compound as the first product
• In hot, dry weather, the stomata partially close, conserving water, but reducing [CO2]
• Sugar can still be produced in low CO2 through a multistep process
• Photosynthesis begins in mesophyll cells, but is completed in bundle-sheath cells around
the veins of the leaf
• Spatial separation of the light reactions and the Calvin cycle

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CAM Plants
• Plants that use crassulacean acid metabolism which is an adaptation for arid conditions
• Stomata open at night and close during the day
• Take up CO2 and incorporate it into a variety of organic acids at night and release CO2
from the organic acids during the day for use in the Calvin cycle
• Temporal (time) separation of light reactions and the Calvin cycle

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 Plant
Adaptations

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 PULSE CHECK

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Pulse Check #1

What has less energy?

Blue Light
or
Yellow Light

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Pulse Check #2

What are the two main products of photosynthesis?

a. Oxygen and carbon dioxide

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Pulse Check #3

Which order of molecular conversions is correct for the Calvin cycle?

a. RuBP  G3P  3-PGA  sugar

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 Pulse Check #4
Plants with only chlorophyll b are irradiated with different
wavelengths. Which would harness the most energy for
photosynthesis?

a. X-Rays (10 nm)