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| Summary of Photosynthesis |
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| During photosynthesis, carbon dioxide and water are used to synthesize sugars. It occurs with the help of the radiant energy of the sun which is absorbed by the chlorophyll of the green plants. |
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| There are two main stages in photosynthesis |
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| Light reaction/Hill's reaction/Photolysis/light-dependent stage |
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| In this stage, the light is absorbed by the chlorophyll pigments and is used to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. Oxygen is released as by-product. Photolysis produces energy which is used in the Calvin cycle that follows. The energy is temporarily stored in ATP and NAD PH2 molecules. |
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| Dark reaction/ Blackman's reactions/ Calvin cycle/ light-independent stage |
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| In this stage, water and carbon dioxide are used to form carbohydrates. This is done with the help of a carbon acceptor - Ribulose Diphosphate (RuDP). Calvin cycle produces sugar molecules and regenerates the carbon acceptor which then enters another cycle. The hydrogen atoms set free during the light reaction are used to fix carbon dioxide. This stage is also called carbon assimilation. |
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| Thus, photosynthesis can be represented by the following reaction: |
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