EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) is a photosynthetic adaptation to periodic water supply, occurring in plants in arid regions (e.g., cacti) or in tropical epiphytes (e.g., orchids and bromeliads). CAM plants close their stomata during the day and take up CO2 at night, when the air temperature is lower.

Detailed explanation-2: -Unlike plants in wetter environments, CAM plants absorb and store carbon dioxide through open pores in their leaves at night, when water is less likely to evaporate. During the day, the pores, also called stomata, stay closed while the plant uses sunlight to convert carbon dioxide into energy, minimizing water loss.

Detailed explanation-3: -CAM Photosynthesis is for Plants Adapted to Dry Environments However, there is no light at night to do photosynthesis. To solve this, CAM plants have evolved to take in CO2 at night and store it in the central vacuole in the form of an acid. This is where CAM gets its name: Crassulacean Acid Metabolism.

Detailed explanation-4: -C3, C4 and CAM are the three different processes that plants use to fix carbon during the process of photosynthesis. Fixing carbon is the way plants remove the carbon from atmospheric carbon dioxide and turn it into organic molecules like carbohydrates.

Detailed explanation-5: -Answer: The primary distinction between C4 and CAM plants is how they minimise water loss. C4 plants move CO2 molecules to reduce photorespiration, whereas CAM plants decide when to extract CO2 from the environment. Photorespiration is a plant process in which oxygen is added to RuBP instead of CO2.