Photosynthesis is the set of light-driven biochemical processes by which phototrophic organisms convert electromagnetic energy into chemical energy, primarily storing it in carbohydrates synthesized from inorganic carbon. In oxygenic photosynthesis, chlorophyll-based reaction centers (photosystems I and II) located in thylakoid membranes couple photon absorption to charge separation, driving linear electron transport from water to NADP⁺, generating O₂, NADPH, and a proton motive force used for ATP synthesis via photophosphorylation. The resulting ATP and NADPH fuel the Calvin–Benson–Bassham cycle, which fixes CO₂ into organic molecules, integrating tightly regulated metabolic, redox, and signaling networks that respond to cellular and environmental conditions.
New research from Michigan State University reveals that photorespiration—long considered a wasteful process—is essential for producing a crucial nutrient for preventing birth defects.
Plants & Animals
Sep 3, 2025
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Regulating the flow of protons across the chloroplast and modulating the activity of its CFo-CF1 adenosine triphosphate (ATP) synthase protein are key to protecting plants from excessive light energy absorbed during photosynthesis, ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 29, 2025
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30
From mushrooms that cast a soft green glow to plankton that glimmers sparkling blue, glowing plants are nothing new to nature. Now, scientists are bringing that light to houseplants.
Plants & Animals
Aug 27, 2025
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570
Microgreens, which are young, edible plants that only take one to three weeks to harvest, are more than garnish at trendy restaurants—they could be the answer to global hunger, according to plant scientists at Penn State. ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 26, 2025
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28
Plants have a sophisticated internal communication system to help them optimize energy production. Now, a new study by an international team of scientists led by Penn State researchers reveals for the first time the molecular ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 25, 2025
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30
Astronauts exploring the moon will need all the help they can get, and scientists have spent lots of time and plenty of money coming up with different systems to do so. Two of the critical needs of any long-term lunar mission ...
Astrobiology
Aug 5, 2025
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61
Terrestrial plants drove an increase in global photosynthesis between 2003 and 2021, a trend partially offset by a weak decline in photosynthesis—the process of using sunlight to make food—among marine algae, according to ...
Earth Sciences
Aug 1, 2025
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233
Evolutionary plant biologists at the University of Toronto (U of T) have identified a protein that evolved approximately 500 million years ago, enabling plants to convert light into energy through photosynthesis as they moved ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 31, 2025
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31
A lot of the climate-altering carbon pollution humans release into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels gets drawn into the Earth's oceans and landscapes through natural processes, mostly through photosynthesis, as plants ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 30, 2025
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72
Skoltech researchers and their colleagues have uncovered an intricate light manipulation mechanism likely used by microscopic algae to boost photosynthesis.
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 23, 2025
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