YOU ARE LEARNING:
Products of Photosynthesis
Products of Photosynthesis
Whereas humans need to consume food to gain nutrients, plants rely on their products of photosynthesis.
Name the process where plants use light to produce glucose.
Plants carry out photosynthesis to make glucose. The glucose **** can be processed into other compounds required by the plant, for example amino acids.
Humans need to eat to get nutrition - plants carry out photosynthesis to get nutrition.
Name one compound that a plant can make from the glucose produced during photosynthesis.
Plants and animals require a certain substance for growth and for making enzymes. Animals obtain this substance from the food they eat, but plants make their own. What is this substance?
So plants can make their own protein! First, they make glucose in photosynthesis. Then they absorb nitrates from the soil, and add that to glucose. This makes an amino acid. Finally, amino acids are joined in a long chain to make a protein.
Glucose can also be joined into long chains (a bit like amino acids). There are two types of glucose chains. One is long and straight and can be used to strengthen plant cell walls. What do you think it's called?
Another chain of glucoses forms a coiled shape that is compact and therefore good for storage. What do you think the name of the storage compound in plants is?
Starch can be stored by the plant in the stems, the roots and which other area do you think?
So during photosynthesis, plants produce glucose. The glucose can be joined to make chains, forming cellulose or starch. The plant can also create amino acids from glucose if it adds nitrate to it. The amino acids can then be joined to make chains, forming protein.
It's no wonder plants don't need any other form of nutrition!
There is one other compound that the plants can change glucose into. This substance is stored in seeds and provides nutrition to the new embryo plant. What substance do you think this is?
There is another process that both plants and animals carry out. Which one do you think it is? Make sure to look at the hint if you are not sure.
Some of the glucose will be used by the plant straight away. A plant also needs to respire in order to release energy and that uses glucose and oxygen, similar to humans and animals.
We can say about all organisms that they need energy, to for example build bigger chains of molecules from smaller molecules.