LIFE 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Light-Independent Reactions, Leaf, Light-Dependent Reactions
Document Summary
Chloroplasts: the sites of photosynthesis in plants. Leaves are the main location of photosynthesis. Chloroplasts are found mainly in the cells of the mesophyll, the interior tissue of the leaf. The typical mesophyll cell has 30-40 chloroplasts. The chlorophyll is in the membranes of thylakoids (connected sacs in the chloroplast); thylakoids may be stacked in columns called grana. Chlorophyll, the pigment which gives leaves their green color, resides in the thylakoid membranes. A chloroplast has an envelope of two membranes surrounding a dense fluid called the stroma. 6 co2 + 12 h20 + light energy c6h12o6 + 6 o2 + 6 h20. Chloroplasts split h2o into hydrogen and oxygen, incorporating the electrons of hydrogen into sugar molecules. Reduction means placing an electron onto a chemical that will be useful as storage. Photosynthesis consists of the light reactions (the photo part) and the calvin cycle (the synthesis part) Reduce the electron acceptor nadp+ to nadph.
