PHOTOSYNTHESIS

Chapter Outline
Chloroplast - The Structure of Chroplast Biophysics of Light Chlorophylls and Carotenoids Photosystems Calvin Cycle Photorespiration Factors Affecting Photosynthesis

Chloroplasts
Three stages of photosynthesis Capturing energy from sunlight Using energy to make ATP and NADPH ATP and NADPH powering carbon fixation Chloroplast structure Internal membranes organized into sacs of t hylakoids and stacked in grana Semiliquid fluid (stroma) surrounds thylakoid membrane

Leaf Organization

Chloroplast Structure
Photosynthetic pigments clustered to form photosystem in membranes of thylakoids When light of proper wavelength strikes a pigment molecule, resulting excitation passes from one molecule to another

Biophysics of Light
Light moves through the air as oscillating electric and magnetic fields
Energy content of a photon is inversely proportional to the wavelength of light
Short wavelengths contain photons of higher energy than long wavelengths

Electromagnetic Spectrum

Biophysics of Light
Ultraviolet Light
Shorter wavelength and more energy than visible light

Absorption Spectra
When a photon strikes a molecule, its energy is either lost as heat or absorbed by the electrons boosting them into higher energy levels
Each molecule has a characteristic range of photons it is capable of absorbing

 Pigments Light absorbing molecules

Photosynthesis uses two:

Carotenoids and Chlorophyll Chlorophyll a (main pigment) and b (accessory pigment) preferentially absorb violet-blue and red light Chlorophyll b has an absorption shifted toward green wavelengths

Absorption Spectrum of Chlorophyll

Chlorophyll and Carotenoid

All plants, algae and cyanobacteria use chlorophyll a as their primary pigment
Achieve higher overall photon capture rates with chlorophyll than with other pigments

Carotenoids absorb photons with a wide array of energies, but are not as efficient in transferring energy as chlorophyll

Organizing pigments into photosystems

Light reactions take place in four stages

Primary photoevent Charge separation Electron transport Chemiosmosis

Light is absorbed by clusters of chlorophyll and accessory pigments collectively called a photosystem

 Light is absorbed by any one of the hundreds of pigment molecules in a photosystem

Transfer excitation energy to a molecule with lower energy level than the others Reaction Center serves as energy sink
Can become saturated at high light level

 Photosystem consistes of two components

Antenna Complex
Captures photons from sunlight

Reaction Center
Pair of chlorophyll a-molecules act as trap for photon energy

Photosystem Function
Bacteria use a single photosystem
Electron joined with a proton to make hydrogen Electron is recycled to chlorophyll Electron transfer process leading to ATP formation is termed cyclic phosphorylation

Major limitation is that it is only geared towards energy production, not biosynthesis

 Plants use two photosystems

Second photosystem uses another arrangement of chlorophyll a to absorb more shorter wavelength, high energy photons Enhancement effect

Photosystem I &

Photosystem II

Two photosystems work together

Two-stage photosystem referred to as non-cyclic phosphorylation
Photosystem II acts first High energy electrons generated by photosystem II used to synthesize ATP, and the passed to photosystem I to drive NADPH production

 Photosynthetic Electron Transport System

H2O CO2

LIGHT

NADP+ ADP

LIGHT REACTOR

CALVIN CYCLE

ATP

NADPH

STROMA (Low H+ concentration)

O2

[CH2O] (sugar)

Cytochrome Photosystem II complex

2 H+

Photosystem I

Light Fd

NADP+ reductase

3 NADP+ + 2H+ NADPH + H+

Pq 2 H2O

Pc

THYLAKOID SPACE (High H+ concentration)

O2 +2 H+ 2 H+

To Calvin cycle ATP synthase

ADP ATP P H+

STROMA (Low H+ concentration)

Thylakoid membrane

Figure 10.17

Calvin Cycle
Carbon fixation is made possible due to the attachment of CO2 to ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate (RuBP) Forms two three-carbon molecules of phosphoglycerate (PGA) Calvin Cycle begins when CO2 binds RuBP to form PGA Also called C3 photosynthesis

Calvin Cycle

Photorespiration
Photorespiration incorporates O2 into ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate and releases CO2 Under normal conditions, 20% of photosynthetically-fixed carbon is lost to photorespiration
Loss rises as temperature increases

C4 photosynthesis produces a four carbon compound which does not go through photorespiration

 Carbon fixation in C4 plants

Decreasing photorespiration
C4 plants conduct photosynthesis in mesophyll cells and the Calvin cycle in bundle sheath cell
Creates high local levels of CO2

Crassulacean Acid Metabolism (CAM) plants open stomata during the night and close them during the day to minimize water loss
Use C4 during the night and C3 during the day

 Comparison of C4 and CAM Plants

Factors Affecting Photosynthesis

The rate of photosynthesis is affected by several factors
Light intensity Carbon dioxide concentration Temperature Any changes in the level of the factor will affect the rate of the reaction and it is called limiting factor

Compensation Point
Compensation point is define as the point at which the rate of photosynthesis in a plant is in exact balance with the rate of respiration, so there is no net exchange of carbon dioxide or oxygen