CONTENTS


INTRODUCTION

DEFINITION

PROCESS OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS

PHASES OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS

FACTORS AFFECTING PHOTOSYNTHESIS

IMPORTANCE OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS
 INTRODUCTION

All living organisms need food. Animals

obtain food from plants but plants prepare
it for themselves by the process of
photosynthesis. Plants are, therefore,
called autotrophs (auto: self, trophe: food),
and the animals which have a different
mode of nutrition are called heterophs
(hetro: different)
CLASSIFICATION OF AUTOTROPHS

Autotrophs are classified into two types:

1. Photoautotrophs: Green coloured plants
and algae which systhesis food in living
cells containing chlorophyll, in the
presence of sunlight, are called
photoautotrophs.
2. Chemoautotrophs: They produce food
by using energy obtained through
chemical reaction and not from sunlight.
 DEFINITION

Photosynthesis is the process by

which living plant cells, containing
chlorophyll, produce food substances
(glucose and starch), from carbon dioxide
and water, by using light energy. They
release oxygen as a waste product in this
process.
PROCESS OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS

Mesophyll cells in a leaf are the principal

centres of this activity. During daytime,
whenthe sunlight falls on the leaf, the light
energy is trapped by the chlorophyll of the
upper layers specially of the mesophyll
specially palisade cells. This energy is
utilized in chemical processes involved in
the manufacture of food, where the raw
materials used are carbon dioxide and
water
 The overall chemical equation of this process
is as follows:
light energy
6CO2 + 12H2O chlorophyll C6H12O6 + 6H2O+ 6O2

The 6 molecules of H2O liberated at the end of the

process are those that are re-formed and are not
out of the original ones.
 PHASES OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS

Light Reaction: The light reaction takes place in
chlorophyll. Containing thylakoids of chloroplasts.
the light reaction occurs in two main steps.
Step 1. Activation of Chlorophyll. The chlorophyll on
exposure to light energy become activated by absorbing
photons .
Step 2.Splitting of water . The absorbed energy is used in
splitting the water molescule into its two components and releasing electrons.
+ - + -
HO H +OH 2H +O +2e
2
 Dark Reaction: The term “dark reaction” does
not mean that it occurs when it is dark i.e., at
night. It only means that the reactions are not
dependent on light.In this phase ,the hydrogen of
NADPH is used to combine it with CO2 by
utilising ATP energy to ultimately produce
glucose . This synthesis occurs in a number of
steps using certain special intermediary
compound .
+
6RuBP +6CO2 +18ATP +12NADPH +12H
6RuBP +C6H12O6 +18ADP +18Pi
+12NADP +6H2O
 FACTORS AFFECTING
PHOTOSYNTHESIS

EXTERNAL FACTORS

INTERNAL FACTORS
EXTERNAL FACTORS

Light Intensity

Carbon dioxide concentration

Temperature

Water content
INTERNAL FACTORS

Chlorophyll

Protoplasm

Structure of leaf
IMPORTANCE OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS


Food for all: Photosynthesis is ultimately the
source of energy and life for all living beings,
whether plants, animals or humans.

Oxygen to breathe: this is the only
biological process which releases oxygen into
the atmosphere. The oxygen supports all life on
earth.