Cell biologyLesson 1 of 1 in the course Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis: Energy Capture, Chloroplast Structure, and Reactions

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 4 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

Photosynthesis captures energy from sunlight and stores it in chemical compounds that living things can use. This lesson explains why photosynthesis is essential to ecosystems and how photosynthetic organisms differ from organisms that depend on other sources of food.

Photosynthesis is the biological process that captures energy from sunlight and converts it into chemical energy stored in carbohydrates. Light energizes electrons, and the photosynthetic process transfers that energy into chemical bonds, including the carbon-carbon bonds of sugars. Organisms can then use the sugars to power metabolism and other cellular activities.

All flashcards

What is photosynthesis?
A biological process that captures sunlight and converts its energy into chemical energy stored in carbohydrates.
What is a photoautotroph?
An organism, such as a plant, alga, or cyanobacterium, that uses light energy to make energy-rich organic molecules.
What is a heterotroph?
An organism that obtains organic material and energy by consuming or otherwise depending on other organisms.
How does a chemoautotroph differ from a photoautotroph?
A chemoautotroph uses energy from inorganic chemical compounds to make organic molecules, while a photoautotroph uses light energy.
How does photosynthesis support a food chain?
It stores solar energy in organic molecules that pass from photosynthetic organisms to consumers and then through the food web.

Quiz questions

  1. Which groups include organisms that perform photosynthesis and are photoautotrophs?Answer: Plants, algae, and cyanobacteria.
  2. What energy source do chemoautotrophs use to make organic molecules?Answer: Energy extracted from inorganic chemical compounds.
  3. Where is chlorophyll located in plant chloroplasts?Answer: In the thylakoid membranes.
  4. What is the direct carbohydrate product of the light-independent reactions?Answer: G3P, which can be used to make other sugars.
  5. What do the light-independent reactions do with energy from the light-dependent reactions?Answer: Use it to assemble carbohydrates from carbon dioxide.

Based on Biology 2e by Mary Ann Clark, Matthew Douglas, Jung Choi (OpenStax), licensed CC BY 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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