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photosynthesis
[ foh-tuh-sin-thuh-sis ]
noun
- the complex process by which carbon dioxide, water, and certain inorganic salts are converted into carbohydrates by green plants, algae, and certain bacteria, using energy from the sun and chlorophyll.
photosynthesis
/ ˌfəʊtəʊsɪnˈθɛtɪk; ˌfəʊtəʊˈsɪnθɪsɪs /
noun
- (in plants) the synthesis of organic compounds from carbon dioxide and water (with the release of oxygen) using light energy absorbed by chlorophyll
- the corresponding process in certain bacteria
photosynthesis
/ fō′tō-sĭn′thĭ-sĭs /
- The process by which green plants, algae, diatoms, and certain forms of bacteria make carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water in the presence of chlorophyll, using energy captured from sunlight by chlorophyll, and releasing excess oxygen as a byproduct. In plants and algae, photosynthesis takes place in organelles called chloroplasts . Photosynthesis is usually viewed as a two-step process. First, in the light reactions , the energy-providing molecule ATP is synthesized using light energy absorbed by chlorophyll and accessory pigments such as carotenoids and phycobilins, and water is broken apart into oxygen and a hydrogen ion, with the electron of the hydrogen transferred to another energy molecule, NADPH. The ATP and NADPH molecules power the second part of photosynthesis by the transfer of electrons. In these light-independent or dark reactions , carbon is broken away from carbon dioxide and combined with hydrogen via the Calvin cycle to create carbohydrates. Some of the carbohydrates, the sugars, can then be transported around the organism for immediate use; others, the starches, can be stored for later use.
- Compare chemosynthesisSee Note at transpiration
photosynthesis
- Use by green plants of the energy in sunlight to carry out chemical reactions , such as the conversion of carbon dioxide into oxygen . Photosynthesis also produces the sugars that feed the plant.
Notes
Derived Forms
- ˌphotosynˈthetically, adverb
- photosynthetic, adjective
Other Words From
- pho·to·syn·thet·ic [foh-t, uh, -sin-, thet, -ik], adjective
- photo·syn·theti·cal·ly adverb
- non·photo·syn·thetic adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of photosynthesis1
A Closer Look
Compare Meanings
How does photosynthesis compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Example Sentences
Specifically, he was interested in the protein-based "reaction centers" in spinach leaves that are the basic mechanism for photosynthesis—the chemical process by which plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen and carbohydrates.
Algae and plants use photosynthesis to turn sunlight into food.
According to the Washington Post, this happens because as the days shorten and turn frigid, it’s not worth it for some trees to expend energy to conduct photosynthesis.
In a steady state, most of the energy captured by photosynthesis is used up by the furnace of respiration and metabolism burning on Earth’s surface by its infrared layer of life.
There’s no sunlight beneath half a mile of ice, so of course there’s no photosynthesis.
Nevertheless, it was required, and at least it was more fun than studying algebra or photosynthesis.
Re-solarizing the food chain should be our goal in every way—taking advantage of the everyday miracle that is photosynthesis.
As the microbes moved toward the light to carry out photosynthesis, they projected the image of the stencil.
Timiriazeff, in his Croonian Lecture, was the first to see the connexion between photosynthesis and the Lagado research.
On the other hand, their ancestors, the green or yellow mastigota, form new plasm by photosynthesis like true cells.
There the miracle of life consists merely of the chemical process of plasmodomism by photosynthesis.
Like von Baeyer's hypothesis, this assumes that formaldehyde and oxygen are the first products of photosynthesis.
In general, starch is the final product of photosynthesis in most green plants; but there are many exceptions to this.
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