Bioenergetics
is the study of how living things obtain, transform, and use energy to carry out life processes.
It explains:
how organisms capture energy (like plants using sunlight in photosynthesis),
how energy is stored (such as in food molecules like glucose), and
how it is released and used (like in cellular respiration to produce ATP, the energy currency of
the cell).
Energy for Life
• Energy is the ability to do work. We can see energy in action when a boy runs, a bird flies, or a
cat eats. Living things use energy not only in visible activities but also inside their bodies.
• All life forms need energy for survival. It is essential for metabolism, the process that keeps the
body alive and working. Energy is captured, transformed into different forms, used for work, and
some of it is lost as heat.
• Unlike matter, energy cannot be recycled. This is why living things need a constant supply of
energy to continue living.
How do Organisms get energy?
Organisms get energy from food, which stores in the form of chemical energy.
Autotrophs (producers): Make their own food, usually using sunlight (photosynthesis).
Examples: plants, green algae, some bacteria. They are the start of all food chains.
Heterotrophs (consumers): Cannot make food. They get energy by eating autotrophs or other
organisms. Examples: animals, fungi, some single-celled organisms.
Energy-Giving molecules: The Glucose and ATP
Glucose
• Made during photosynthesis using sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide.
• Stores large and stable amounts of energy (long-term storage).
• In humans, glucose travels in the blood and is broken down by cellular respiration to release
energy.
ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate)
• Produced from glucose during cellular respiration.
• Stores small, quick-use energy (short-term).
• Used directly by cells for important work (movement, transport, chemical reactions).
• Releases energy when it loses one phosphate (ATP → ADP).
• GLUCOSE – stored energy ( Battery )
• ATP – ready to use energy (cash)
Photosynthetic Organelles
Photosynthetic pigments capture light energy for photosynthesis.
• Chlorophylls (A & B): Green pigments; absorb red, blue, and violet light.
• Carotenoids: Yellow, orange, red pigments; absorb blue, green, and violet light.
• Phycobilins (red algae): Give red color; absorb blue and green light.
• Chloroplasts are organelles in plants and algae where photosynthesis happens.
• Grana (sac – like membranes called the thylakoids): Site of light-dependent reactions.
• Thylakoids: Contain photosystem I and II (chlorophyll + other molecules).
• Stroma (space found outside thylakoids): Site of Calvin Cycle (light-independent reactions
Photosystem in Photosynthesis
Photosystems are light-harvesting complexes found in the thylakoid membrane.
Each photosystem has:
• A reaction center with chlorophyll-A.
• Other pigments that collect light and transfer energy to chlorophyll-A.
There are two types:
Photosystem II (PSII / P680): Works first, absorbs light best at 680 nm.
Photosystem I (PSI / P700): Works after PSII, absorbs light best at 700 nm