PHOTOSYNTHESIS
THE CALVIN CYCLE
Question
[CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
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ribulose bisphosphate
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an unstable 6-carbon molecule
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PGAL
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rubisco
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Detailed explanation-1: -The most common pathway combines one molecule of CO2 with a 5-carbon sugar called ribulose biphosphate (RuBP). The enzyme which catalyzes this reaction (nicknamed RuBisCo) is the most abundant enzyme on earth! The resulting 6-carbon molecule is unstable, so it immediately splits into two 3-carbon molecules.
Detailed explanation-2: -RuBisCO catalyzes a reaction between CO2 and RuBP, which forms a six-carbon compound that is immediately converted into two three-carbon compounds. This process is called carbon fixation, because CO2 is “fixed” from its inorganic form into organic molecules.
Detailed explanation-3: -Stage 1: Fixation RuBP has five atoms of carbon, flanked by two phosphates. RuBisCO catalyzes a reaction between CO2 and RuBP. For each CO2 molecule that reacts with one RuBP, two molecules of 3-phosphoglyceric acid (3-PGA) form. 3-PGA has three carbons and one phosphate.
Detailed explanation-4: -To begin the Calvin cycle, a molecule of CO2 reacts with a five-carbon compound called ribulose bisphosphate (RuBP) producing an unstable six-carbon intermediate which immediately breaks down into two molecules of the three-carbon compound phosphoglycerate (PGA).