Photosynthesis
sunlight
CO2 + H2O  C6H12O6 + O2
What are the reactants of photosynthesis?
What are the products of photosynthesis?
Reactants of photosynthesis
• H2O is transported through the plant by the
• Xylem (xylem and phloem make up the vein or vascular
bundle sheath)
• CO2 enters through the plant through the
• Stoma (stomata and stomate)
• Sunlight is absorbed by
• Chlorophyll in the chloroplast
Structures of a leaf
Chloroplast
• Organelle found in the cells of plants and
some other organisms that use energy from
sunlight to make food molecules
An average plant cell may contain
50 chloroplast…
Chloroplast
Important Structures in Chloroplast
• Double membrane
• Inner membrane
• Outer membrane
• Stroma
• Granum
• Thylakoid
• chlorophyll
Function of structures:
• Inner and outer membrane
– smooth outer membrane, freely permeable to
molecules
– smooth inner membrane, contains many
embedded proteins that regulate the passage in
and out of the chloroplast
• Stroma
– Framework, gives support and has some fluid
Function of structures:
• Granum (plural grana)
– tightly stacked thylakoids, involved in light
reactions and storing ATP
• Thylakoid
– disk-like structures , stacked thylakoids are a
granum
– Chlorophyll is located in the thylakoid
Chlorophyll
• Molecules that absorb sunlight or light energy
(called photosynthetic pigments)
• Pigment gives plants its green color
Chlorophyll vs. Hemoglobin
Light absorption of chlorophyll
Chloroplast and photosynthesis
Products of photosynthesis
• Oxygen (O2)
– Waste product
– Released out of plant through stoma
• Glucose (C6H12O6)
– Useful product
– Stored as starch and transported through phloem
Exit card
When an aquatic plant is underwater,
one can see bubbles being released
from the leaves. What are those
bubbles?