| Term | Definition |
|---|
| chemiosmosis | the diffusion of ions across a selectively-permeable membrane |
| photosynthesis | Photosynthesis is a metabolic pathway that converts light energy into chemical energy. Its initial substrates are carbon dioxide and water; the energy source is sunlight; and the end-products are oxygen and carbohydrates, such as sucrose, glucose or starch. |
| Light Dependent Reaction | converts solar energy into potential energy; produces oxygen gas and converts ADP and NADP+ into the energy carriers ATP and NADPH |
| Calvin-Benson Cycle/Light Independant Reaction/Dark Reaction | chemical reactions that convert carbon dioxide and other compounds into glucose; no light is needed |
| Electron transport system/Chain (ets or etc) | couples a chemical reaction between an electron donor (such as NADH) and an electron acceptor (such as O2) to the transfer of H+ ions across a membrane, through a set of mediating biochemical reactions. These H+ ions are used to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP |
| photorespiration | alternate pathway for production of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate (G3P) by RuBisCO, the main enzyme of the light-independent reactions of photosynthesis |
| Rubisco | an enzyme (EC 4.1.1.39) that is used in the Calvin cycle to catalyze the first major step of carbon fixation |
| RuBP | an important substrate involved in carbon fixation. The enzyme Rubisco catalyzes RuBP with carbon dioxide in order to synthesize a highly unstable 6-carbon intermediate |
| PGAL | a chemical compound that occurs as an intermediate in several central metabolic pathways of all organisms |
| NADPH | used in anabolic reactions, such as lipid and nucleic acid synthesis, which require NADPH as a reducing agent. |
| Thylakoid | a membrane-bound compartment inside chloroplasts and cyanobacteria. They are the site of the light-dependent reactions of photosynthesis |
| Mesophyll: Spongy and Palisade | An upper palisade layer of tightly packed, vertically elongated cells, one to two cells thick, directly beneath the adaxial epidermis. Its cells contain many more chloroplasts than the spongy layer. These long cylindrical cells are regularly arranged in one to five rows; Beneath the palisade layer is the spongy layer. The cells of the spongy layer are more rounded and not so tightly packed. There are large intercellular air spaces. These cells contain fewer chloroplasts than those of the palisade layer |
| Photosystem I and II | are protein complexes involved in photosynthesis. They are found in the thylakoid membranes of plants, algae and cyanobacteria (in plants and algae these are located in the chloroplasts); Type I photosystems use ferredoxin-like iron-sulfur cluster proteins as terminal electron acceptors, while type II photosystems ultimately shuttle electrons to a quinone terminal electron acceptor |
| Epidermis | the outer single-layered group of cells covering a plant, especially the leaf and young tissues of a vascular plant including stems and roots |
| Cuticle | any of a variety of tough but flexible, non-mineral outer coverings of an organism, or part of an organism, that provide protection |
| Carbon Fixation | process found in autotrophs (organisms that produce their own food), usually driven by photosynthesis, whereby carbon dioxide is changed into organic materials |
| Accessory pigments | pigment that is present in chloroplasts or photosynthetic bacteria and captures the light energy necessary for photosynthesis. |
| Photon | an elementary particle, the quantum of the electromagnetic field and thus the basic unit of light and all other forms of electromagnetic radiation. |
| Guard Cell | responsible for regulating the size of the opening of the stoma |
| transpiration | e evaporation of water from the aerial parts of plants, especially leaves but also stems, flowers and roots |
| Stomata | pore, found in the leaf and stem epidermis that is used for gas exchange |
| Grana | a stack of thylakoid discs. Chloroplasts can have from 10 to 100 grana. Grana are connected by stroma thylakoids, also called intergrana thylakoids or lamellae |
| Phloem | cells are laid out end-to-end throughout the entire plant, transporting the sugars and other molecules created by the plant |
| xylem | the system of tubes and transport cells that circulates water and dissolved minerals |
| Root | the organ of a plant body that typically lies below the surface of the soil |
| Chlorophyll | green pigment found in most plants, algae, and cyanobacteria |
| Bundle Sheath | a part of the transport system in vascular plants. The transport itself happens in vascular tissue, which exists in two forms: xylem and phloem |
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