Biology Lab Final

What is photosynthesis?

A process used by organisms such as plants and algae to produce sugar and oxygen from carbon dioxide and water in the presence of sunlight.

What is the overall reaction for photosynthesis?

Sunlight + CO2 + Water —> Glucose + Oxygen

What organelle is used in most cells for photosynthesis?

The chlorplast

What are pigments? What is there role in photosynthesis?

Colorful chemical compounds that absorb specific wavelengths of visible light and reflect others. In plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, specialized photosynthetic pigments capture energy from the sun to drive the reactions that turn water and carbon dioxide into food.

What occurs during the light reactions?

Capture sunlight inside the thylakoid membranes of plant chloroplasts. This solar energy splits water molecules to release oxygen, excites electrons, and creates ATP and NADPH, which provide the energy needed to build sugars in the next stage.

What occurs during the Calvin cycle?

Plants use energy from ATP and electrons from NADPH—created during the light reactions—to convert carbon dioxide gas from the air into three-carbon sugar molecules called G3P. This happens in the stroma.

Can any part of photosynthesis take place in the dark?

The calvin cycle

What energy process is always going on in plants whether they are photosynthesizing or not?

Cellular respiration

What part of the electromagnetic spectrum is important in photosynthesis?

The visible light spectrum with blue, red, and green light.

Which wavelengths and colors of light are absorbed by plants? Which are reflected?

Plants absorb blue and red light and reflect green and yellow light.

What was done in the leaf disk experiment? What did it show us about photosynthesis?

Leaf disks were put in a tube and if light was removed then they would sink but if light was kept they floated and baking soda was used to release oxygen from the environment.

What does ET50 refer to in the experiment?

The amount of time it takes for 50% of the leaf disks to float.

What are some factors that affect the rate of photosynthesis?

Light intensity, carbon dioxide concentration, temperature, and the amount of chlorophyll.

What is standard deviation a measure of?

How far away numbers in a data set are from the average (mean).

What is the structure of DNA?

A double helix that looks like a twisted ladder.

What are restriction enzymes(endonucleases)?

A protein produced by bacteria that cuts DNA at specific target sequences.

What is meant by a recognition site or sequence?

Understand the electrophoresis procedure outlines in the virtual lab

What does each band on the gel represent?

Where would you find the smallest fragment on the gel? The largest?

What is a DNA fingerprint? How are they used?

Be able to compare DNA fingerprints to answer questions

What is bacterial tranformation?

Be able to outline the steps in the bacteria transformation procedure?

What is meant by “cells are made competent”?

What is transformation efficacy? How is it calculated?

What is recombinant DNA?

What are some ways recombinant DNA is used?

What is a standard curve and why are they used?