Fotosünteesivad

Fotosünteesivad is a term that refers to organisms capable of performing photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is a vital biological process used by plants, algae, and cyanobacteria to convert light energy into chemical energy, which is stored in the form of glucose or other organic compounds. This process is fundamental to most life on Earth, as it forms the base of many food chains and produces the oxygen that aerobic organisms breathe.

The general equation for photosynthesis is often simplified as: 6CO2 + 6H2O + Light Energy → C6H12O6 + 6O2. This indicates that carbon dioxide and water are used as reactants, with light energy driving the reaction to produce glucose (a sugar) and oxygen as byproducts. Chlorophyll, a green pigment found in chloroplasts within plant and algal cells, plays a crucial role in capturing light energy.

There are two main stages of photosynthesis: the light-dependent reactions and the light-independent reactions (also known as the Calvin cycle). The light-dependent reactions occur in the thylakoid membranes of chloroplasts and directly use light energy to split water molecules, releasing oxygen and generating energy-carrying molecules like ATP and NADPH. The light-independent reactions take place in the stroma of the chloroplasts and utilize the ATP and NADPH produced in the first stage to fix carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into organic molecules. Organisms that carry out this complex series of reactions are thus termed fotosünteesivad.