Calvin Cycle

3 Stages

Carbon Fixation, Reduction, Regeneration

Carbon Fixation is..

• The process of attaching a CO₂ to a 5 carbon sugar called Ribulose bisphosphate (RuBP)

Carbon Fixation Catalyzed by

RuBisCO

Carbon Fixation after CO2 fixed…

• After CO₂ has been “fixed” to RuBP, the each of the resulting 6-carbon compounds breaks into
  2 x 3-carbon compounds called glycerate 3-phosphate (GP)

This creates a total of
6 x GP

Reduction Each GP molecule is converted into a

triose phosphate (TP) called Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate (G3P)

Reduction Each molecule requires:

• The energy from 1 ATP molecule

• The electrons from 1 NADPH molecule

Regeneration

• FIVE triose phosphates remain in the cycle (this is a total of 15 carbons)

• The carbons in the 5 x TP will get rearranged into 3 x RuBP

• This requires the energy from 3 x ATP (creates
  3 x ADP)