Answer:
a. 3 molecules 3 carbon
b. 6 molecules 18 carbon
c. 6 molecules 18 carbon
d. 5 molecules 15 carbon
e. 3 molecules 15 carbon
f. 3 molecules 15 carbon
Explanation:
The net reaction of the Calvin cycle is the conversion of CO2 into the three-carbon sugar G3P. Along the way, reactions rearrange carbon atoms among intermediate compounds and use the ATP and NADPH produced by the light reactions. In this exercise, you will track carbon atoms through the Calvin cycle as required for the net production of one molecule of G3P. The Calvin cycle is essentially a sequence of reactions that shuffle carbon atoms among different molecules. Within the Calvin cycle, the total number of carbon atoms is conserved: There is no net gain or loss of carbon atoms. Carbon atoms enter the Calvin cycle as individual CO2 molecules (1 carbon atom per molecule) and exit the cycle in the 3-carbon sugar glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate (G3P). For each intermediate compound in the Calvin cycle, which are labeled a-f, identify the number of molecules of that intermediate and the total number of carbon atoms contained in those molecules. As an example, the output G3P is labeled for you: 1 molecule with a total of 3 carbon atoms. Labels may be used once, more than once, or not at all.
Hence,
a. 3 molecules 3 carbon
b. 6 molecules 18 carbon
c. 6 molecules 18 carbon
d. 5 molecules 15 carbon
e. 3 molecules 15 carbon
f. 3 molecules 15 carbon
