IB Biology Exam Prep

Category - Biology

An important difference in how aquatic autotrophs and land plants carry out photosynthesis is that only land plants:
  1. Receive carbon dioxide through specialized structures.
  2. Have chlorophyll a, which allows them to absorb red and blue light.
  3. Produce NADPH during the light reactions.
  4. Use a chemiosmotic mechanism for producing ATP.
Explanation
Correct Response: A. Land plants take in carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through pores in their leaves called stomata. Such pores are necessary because the leaves of land plants are coated in a waxy covering called the cuticle. The cuticle prevents water loss but also limits gasses from diffusing directly into the leaves. Aquatic autotrophs such as algae lack a cuticle. This allows aquatic autotrophs to obtain dissolved carbon dioxide from the water primarily by diffusion, so stomata are not needed. Aquatic plants and land plants both contain chlorophyll a (B), produce NADPH during the light reactions (C), and use a chemiosmotic mechanism for producing ATP (D).
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