6.

1: Types of Nutrition
6.2: Photosynthesis
Page 59
Objectives

• To understand how plants and animals get the food needed for energy, making new parts, and repairing old
parts

• To understand that plants need nourishment

• To know the basic definition of photosynthesis

• To know the word and symbol equations of photosynthesis

Types of nutrition
• Nutrition: is taking in useful substances that could be used for energy, making new parts or repairing old
parts

• Autotrophic nutrition: * Plants require raw materials for building tissues and providing energy
* They use inorganic compounds (carbon dioxide, water, and mineral ions) from
the environment to build organic substances as carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and
vitamins
* To do so, plants need energy (from sunlight), and enzymes (found in plants’ cells)

• Heterotrophic nutrition: * Animals and fungi take in ready-made food (organic substances made by plants)
* Some animals eat other animals that have already eaten plants
Photosynthesis

• Plants use carbon dioxide and water to make the carbohydrate glucose. (oxygen is released)

• Carbon dioxide and water can’t combine to produce glucose unless provided with energy form sunlight

• Photosynthesis: is the process by which plants manufacture organic compounds from raw materials using
energy from light
 Chlorophyll

• Sunlight energy is trapped by chlorophyll: a green pigment found in the chloroplasts of plant cells

• Chlorophyll absorbs some of the energy from sunlight that drives chemical reactions to produce glucose

• So chloroplasts are energy transducers converting light energy(sunlight) into chemical energy (stored in
glucose)
Photosynthesis equation

• The full equation of photosynthesis is:

Light energy
In words: Carbon dioxide + Water chlorophyll Glucose + Oxygen

Light energy
In symbols: 6CO2 + 6 H2O C6H12O6 + 6O2 (balanced equation)
chlorophyll
Reactants and products in photosynthesis:

• Reactants are: 1. carbon dioxide form the atmosphere

2. water from the soil, with some minerals as nitrate, phosphate and magnesium

• Products are: 1. oxygen as a waste product released to the atmosphere

2. complex food compounds which may be used for energy, growth, repair, and reproduction
they include: * Glucose and starch (contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen)
* Amino acids and proteins (contain carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen)
* Nucleic acids (contain carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and phosphorus)
* Lipids (contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen)
Photosynthesis
 Testing a leaf for starch

• Objective-
• To know that iodine solution is used to test for starch in leaves

• To know that cell membranes and chlorophyll should be dissolved before using starch

• To know that plants should be de-starched before being tested to be sure about the results of your
investigations
Testing leaves for starch
Testing leaves for starch
1. Leaf is boiled in water for about 2 minutes
Purpose: to break down the cell membranes (cell wall, cell membrane, and chloroplast membrane), to
stop the action of enzymes within the leaf, and to make it easier for ethanol and iodine to enter

2. Leaf is warmed in ethanol until it turns colorless

Purpose: to extract the chlorophyll which would mask observations (because the green chlorophyll and the
brown iodine can look black together)

3. Leaf is dipped into warm water

Purpose: to soften the brittle leaf after being put in alcohol

4. Leaf is put on white tile and iodine is added

Purpose: to show the presence or absence of starch (colors are shown against the white tile)
 Controls
• In investigations: 1. control group: has all the substances that it needs including the substance to be tested
2. experimental group: given everything it needs except for one substance that is to be tested

• Then the control and the experimental group should be treated in exactly the same way

• The differences at the end of the experiment must be because of the substance being tested

• Activities 6.3 and 6.4 that are carried to see if light and chlorophyll are needed for photosynthesis.
At the end of each investigation, test a leaf from the experimental group and a leaf from the control group to see
if they have made starch, then you can find out which substances are necessary for photosynthesis
De-starching plants
• Before doing the investigations, plants should be de-starched by leaving them in a dark cupboard for at least
24 hours so that they use their starch stores

• If plants are not de-starched before the investigation, and you found that the leaves contained starch at the
end of the investigation, you could not be sure that they had been photosynthesizing (the starch might be
made before the investigation began)