Photosynthesis Process

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Carbon dioxide is emitted through many means, both naturally and by different human activities. Plants play a crucial role in limiting the abundance of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. In general, photosynthesis can be explained by the following formula: 6CO2 + 6H20 + ATP → C6H1206 + 602. Using the carbon dioxide present in their environment, water from their roots, and energy from sunlight, a plant is able to continue to grow and conduct cellular respiration through this process. But how exactly is it able to accomplish this? Well, let us being with the acquirement of ATP during the light dependent reactions. Photosynthesis occurs in the chloroplast and it begins when a photon is absorbed by a chlorophyll molecule from photosystem II. After …show more content…
Ostensibly, it would seem to be only the opposite of photosynthesis when examining its formula: C6H1206 + 602 → 6CO2 + 6H20 + ATP. However, it is much more complex and it involves many different stages. For one, glycolysis is the conversion of glucose into pyruvate. More specifically, it begins with a six carbon hexose sugar that phosphorylates, acquiring two phosphates--usually from ATP that is used in order to initiate this process. This then is split evenly (a phosphate and 3 carbon each) into triose phosphates. After oxidation occurs, hydrogen is removed and is used in order for NAD to be reduced to NADH, producing ATP. Through all of this, we result in two pyruvate that are ready for the next stage of cellular respiration. This pyruvate is moved from the cytoplasm of the mitochondria to the mitochondrial matrix--starting the link reaction. There are are two main changes that occur: decarboxylation and dehydrogenation. In the former, CO2 is removed and with the latter, hydrogen is removed. This allows NAD to convert to NADH, once again. From this, we get the product acetyl CoA once the acetyl group and coenzyme A react. This acetyl group of the acetyl CoA is used in the Kreb cycle, helping form a 6 carbon sugar which undergoes oxidative decarboxylation twice, resulting in the loss of two carbon along with the production of some CO2. NAD and FAD also gain hydrogen and carry this to the electron transport chain. During substrate phosphorylation, more of this is produced as well. This NADH and FADH2 is what contains the majority of the ATP, however, to properly extract this ATP, NADH and FADH2 need to deposit their hydrogen ions through the electron transport chain. NADH deposits its hydrogen ions using protein complex one while FADH2 uses protein complex two, both requiring electrons as this transfer is quite strenuous. In the next stage of oxidative

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