6: Photosynthesis
- Page ID
- 24765
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- 6.1: Introduction
- Chloroplasts arose through a second endosymbiotic event in plants and various protists. These light-harvesting organelles share a similarity in structure and genome to photoautotrophic cyanobacteria. The thylakoid membranes of chloroplasts and cyanobacteria provide additional surface area for energy capture of light to occur. The light-dependent reactions in chloroplasts utilize two protein complexes referred to as Photosystem I (PSI) and Photosystem II (PSII) located on the thylakoid membranes.
- 6.2: Photosynthetic Pigments
- In this page, you will find instructions on how to extract and separate photosynthetic pigments as well as some questions to consider when performing chromatography analysis.
- 6.3: Absorbance Spectra of Photosynthetic Pigments
- Visible light wavelengths (between 400nm-700nm) are strongly absorbed by the pigments in leaves. These pigments utilize the energy of these wavelengths to take part in the light reactions. The cellular structure of leaves does not absorb wavelengths longer than these wavelengths (>700nm in the infra-red range). By comparing the amount of visible light to the amount of near infra-red lights that are reflected, one can gauge the relative health of leaves, forests, or jungles.
- 6.4: Photosynthesis (Concept)
- This page contains the link to the 'Exploring Light' simulation and a concept map regarding photosynthesis.