Ch 11 - Photosynthesis in Higher Plants11th Biology
Importance of Photosynthesis
What are the two primary reasons why photosynthesis is absolutely vital for life on Earth?
What are the two primary reasons why photosynthesis is absolutely vital for life on Earth?
- Primary Food Source: It is the fundamental source of all food on the planet, driving every food chain by converting solar energy into chemical energy.
- Oxygen Release: It is solely responsible for the release of Oxygen () into the atmosphere, which is required for aerobic respiration and the survival of most organisms.
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Mohl's Half-Leaf Experiment
What was the experimental setup and ultimate conclusion of the half-leaf experiment involving Potassium Hydroxide (KOH)?
What was the experimental setup and ultimate conclusion of the half-leaf experiment involving Potassium Hydroxide (KOH)?
- The Setup: A part of a leaf is enclosed in a test tube containing cotton soaked in KOH (Potassium hydroxide), while the other half of the leaf is left exposed to the open air. The setup is placed in sunlight.
- The Mechanism: KOH actively absorbs Carbon Dioxide () from the air inside the tube.
- The Result: When tested with iodine, only the exposed part of the leaf tested positive for starch.
- Conclusion: It experimentally proved that Carbon Dioxide () is absolutely essential for photosynthesis.
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Joseph Priestley's Experiment (1770)
How did Joseph Priestley experimentally demonstrate the essential role of air in the growth of green plants?
How did Joseph Priestley experimentally demonstrate the essential role of air in the growth of green plants?
- The Setup: He placed a burning candle and a live mouse inside a closed bell jar. Both the candle extinguished and the mouse suffocated due to foul air.
- The Addition: He then placed a mint plant in the same bell jar with the mouse and candle.
- The Result: The mouse survived and the candle continued to burn.
- Conclusion: Plants restore to the air whatever breathing animals and burning candles remove (later identified as Oxygen).
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Also in this chapter
39 more cards to study in Prism
- 4Jan Ingenhousz's Experiment (1779)
- 5Julius von Sachs' Contribution (1854)
- 6T.W. Engelmann's Action Spectrum
- 7Overall Equation of Photosynthesis
- 8Action Spectrum vs. Absorption Spectrum
- 9Cornelius van Niel's Paradigm Shift
- 10Tracing the Origin of Evolved Oxygen
- 11Division of Labour in Chloroplasts
- 12Spatial Alignment of Chloroplasts
- 13Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR)
- 14Photosynthetic Pigments and Colors
- 15Splitting of Water (Photolysis)
- 16Role of Accessory Pigments
- 17Light Harvesting Complex (LHC)
- 18Photosystem I vs. Photosystem II
- 19The Z-Scheme of Electron Transport
- 20Cyclic vs. Non-cyclic Photophosphorylation
- 21Conditions for Cyclic Photophosphorylation
- 22Energy Cost of the Calvin Cycle
- 23Creation of the Proton Gradient
- 24NADP Reductase Enzyme Location
- 25Structure of ATP Synthase
- 26Primary $CO_2$ Acceptor in C3 Pathway
- 27Stages of the Calvin Cycle
- 28The Wasteful Process of Photorespiration
- 29Organelles of the C2 Cycle (Photorespiration)
- 30Kranz Anatomy
- 31Hatch-Slack Pathway: Mesophyll Phase
- 32Hatch-Slack Pathway: Bundle Sheath Phase
- 33Absence of Photorespiration in C4 Plants
- 34Blackman's Law of Limiting Factors
- 35Light as a Limiting Factor
- 36$CO_2$ Concentration Constraints
- 37Sequence of Electron Carriers
- 38Temperature Optimums (C3 vs C4)
- 39Water Stress and Photosynthesis
- 40Detailed ATP/NADPH Cost per $CO_2$
- 41Feedback Inhibition of Photosynthesis
- 42Photosynthetic Number
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