Prof. Dr. Gamila H.

Ali
Water Pollution Research Department

National Research Centre

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 Photosynthesis
• There are two basic life-sustaining processes in
lakes, just as on land; photosynthesis and
respiration. Lake photosynthesizere include algae
and macrophytes. Together, they are the primary
producers, because they create the organic
material required by most other organisms for
nutrients and energy.

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 Photosynthesis
• The process by which plants, algae &
cyanobacteria capture the energy in sunlight
and convert it into chemical energy

• Considered to be the most important

chemical process on earth

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• not until photosynthesis began (~ 2 billion
years ago) did oxygen began to build up in
the earth’s atmosphere

• all oxygen in the atmosphere has cycled

through photosynthetic organisms

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 Photosynthesis

Occurs in two stages:

-Light reactions - harvest photon energy to synthesize ATP &
NADPH
-Carbon reactions (Calvin cycle) - use energy from light
reactions to reduce CO2 to carbohydrate
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Overview of Photosynthesis

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 Photosynthesis
• Elementary overall photosynthetic reaction of
phytoplankton during daylight hours.

Energy From Sun

6CO2 + 12H2O  C6H12O6 + 6H2O + 6O2

Carbon dioxide + water  sugar + water + oxygen

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• Elementary overall nighttime respiration reaction
by phytoplankton.
Energy for metabolism

C5H12O6 + 6H2O + 6O2  6CO2 + 12H2O

Sugar + Water + Oxygen  Carbon dioxide + Water

• The whole interaction of photosynthesis and

respiration by plants, animals, and microorganisms
represents the food web.
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