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Chemosynthesis and photosynthesis are processes by which organisms use an energy source to create food. These processes have similarities and differences, but they are both vital to our ecosystem, producing the food that is used to fuel life on Earth.
Chemosynthesis and photosynthesis are processes by which organisms use an energy source to create food. These processes have similarities and differences, but they are both vital to our ecosystem, producing the food that is used to fuel life on Earth.
What
- All living things need food. Animals eat food and turn it into energy. Plants and microbes cannot eat, so they must create their own food. Plants undergo the process of photosynthesis, using energy from the sun to produce glucose, a sugar that is also a carbohydrate, as their food. The sun provides energy for most living organisms; however, there are some organisms that are out of reach of the sun. Bacteria are the only organisms that undergo the process of chemosynthesis, in which they harness energy from chemical processes to make food.
Where
- Photosynthesis occurs in plants anywhere there is sufficient sunlight. This includes on land, in shallow water and even in and under ice. Chemosynthesis occurs in microbes that live far from the reaches of the sun, in a place of extreme temperatures and extreme pressure, on the ocean floor.
How
- Photosynthesis occurs when energy from the sun is used to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen. The formula to represent this is: CO2 + 6H2O -> C6H12O6 + 6O2. In contrast, chemosynthesis uses the energy released by a variety of chemical reactions to create glucose. Some types of bacteria use hydrogen sulfide with carbon dioxide and oxygen together to produce sugar with sulfur and water. A formula to represent this is: CO2 + 4H2S + O2 -> CH20 + 4S + 3H2O.
Differences
- Both photosynthesis and chemosynthesis are reactions that use energy, but the energy source is different. In addition, both processes involve water--but in distinct ways. In photosynthesis, water is needed to fuel the process; in chemosynthesis, water is an end result of the process.
Similarities
- Although there are differences, there are also similarities. Both processes need carbon dioxide to produce the carbohydrates. Both processes also need an energy source to fuel the reactions. And, most important, both photosynthesis and chemosynthesis result in food for the organisms, which in turn becomes food for other organisms, supporting the circle of life.
Photosynthesis
Root System Brings in Water
- The plant draws water from the soil up through its root system. The water is then transported up to the leaves by special plant cells called xylem. Plants lose some water when other natural processes occur, and some water is used during the photosynthesis process.
Stomata Receive Carbon Dioxide
- The plant has special cells called stomata which open and close. It is through the stomata that the plant takes carbon dioxide in and releases oxygen molecules formed during the chemical reaction of photosynthesis. Plants also lose a lot of water while gas exchange is taking place.
Chlorophyll Causes a Chemical Reaction
- Chlorophyll is a complex molecule which absorbs light. Any substance which absorbs light is called a pigment. Certain pigments absorb certain wavelengths of light and reflect the rest back. Chlorophyll absorbs all wavelengths of light except for green, which is reflects back. That is why we see green when we look at grass or the leaves of a tree. Since these plant parts are photosynthetic, they contain high levels of the chlorophyll pigment. When a plant absorbs light energy (carbon dioxide), chlorophyll causes the chemical reaction to occur that turns the light energy into two different substances: ATP and NADPH. ATP, or adenosine triphosphate, and NADPH, or nicotine adenine dinucleotide phosphate, are both usable forms of energy which the plant then uses for other processes. During the chemical reaction initiated by the chlorophyll molecule, water molecules get split, which releases oxygen molecules into the atmosphere.
Please view below video for better understanding of the Photosynthes
Chemosynthesis
Chemosynthesis is a process certain organisms use to produce energy, akin to photosynthesis, but without the utilization of sunlight. The energy comes from the oxidization (burning) of chemicals which seep up from the Earth's crust. The organisms that use chemosynthesis, all bacteria, manufacture carbohydrates and other organic molecules from the oxidization of sulfates or ammonia. The hydrogen they use comes from hydrogen sulphite, whereas the nitrogen comes from ammonia or nitrates. The organisms that use chemosynthesis are found around hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor. They are adapted to circumstances which would have been commonplace billion of years ago, leading some to call them descendants of the earliest life on Earth.
Organisms that use chemosynthesis are extremophiles, living in harsh conditions such as the absence of sunlight and a wide range of water temperatures, some approaching the boiling point. These organisms are known for living inside one another, engaging in symbiotic and parasitic relationships to maximize their chances of survival. Chemosynthetic microbes provide the foundation for larger communities of organisms which consume the microbes to survive. One interesting example is the tubeworm, filled with billions of chemosynthetic bacteria. The tubeworm starts life with a mouth and gut, which it uses to intake many bacteria. Its mouth then closes and it continues to survive by consuming food produced by its internal bacteria.
Chemosynthetic species are autotrophs, organisms capable of manufacturing organic matter directly from inorganic feedstock. Autotrophs of different types can produce energy either through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis. The gases that autotrophs use to create energy would be poisonous to most organisms. They use unusual enzymes capable of resisting high temperatures and pressures. Since these organisms live on the bottom of the ocean floor, they are subject to much pressure from the water above. Ecologies surrounding deep sea vents are extremely prosperous relative to those located further away from such chemical sources, which must survive solely on dead organic matter slowly descending from the waters above.
Chemosynthetic organisms have been viewed by the biotech industry as a means of converting toxic chemicals into harmless organic variants. If life exists on other planets or moons such as Mars or Titan, it has been postulated that they may use chemosynthesis.
