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Pill

Theme C - Interaction &  Interdependence

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Direct Hit

Theme A - Unity & Diversity

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Page Facing Up

Theme B - Form & Function

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Keycap Digit One

Theme D - Continuity & Change

🎉 Did You Know? The light-independent reactions of photosynthesis got its cool name - the Calvin Cycle - after Melvin Calvin, who secured himself a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1961 for figuring it all out! 🏆

<ul>
	<li>The first carb produced in the light-independent reactions of photosynthesis.</li>
</ul>

<ul>
	<li>Combine two triose phosphate molecules 🔄 voil&agrave;! You get hexose phosphate.</li>
	<li>Fancy more? Hexose phosphate molecules can play a game of bond and stick together to make... 🥁... starch!</li>
</ul>

🌿 Real-World Example: Imagine your little triose molecules as LEGO bricks. Combine two, and you get a bigger LEGO structure, like a hexose. Add more bricks, and you create a massive LEGO castle - our starch!

If we got greedy and converted ALL our triose phosphate to hexose or starch, we&#39;d run out of RuBP in our chloroplasts. And what happens next? Carbon fixation would throw in the towel and stop! 🚫

Some of that triose phosphate (not all) needs to gear up and regenerate RuBP.

<ul>
	<li>It&rsquo;s like transforming a cute tricycle (three-carbon sugar) into a more complex bike (five-carbon sugar). One step won&rsquo;t cut it; we need a whole procedure.</li>
</ul>

RuBP gets both used up and produced. It&#39;s like taking a spin class and burning calories but also building muscles at the same time!

<ul>
	<li>RuBP + CO2: Only one out of six carbon atoms is brand new. So...</li>
	<li>Only 1/6 of the triose phosphate molecules can peace out of the Calvin Cycle.</li>
	<li>5/6? They&#39;ve got a job - bringing RuBP back to life!</li>
</ul>

🍍 Real-World Example: It&rsquo;s like making a pineapple smoothie! To get a full glass, you blend six times because only a bit gets added each time. In the same way, for one molecule of hexose, the Calvin cycle spins six times.

Regenerating RuBP isn&#39;t free. It&#39;s like getting a toy from a vending machine; you need a coin! Here, our coin is ATP. Triose phosphate gets upgraded to ribulose phosphate, which then levels up to RuBP.

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Closing Fun Fact: The Calvin Cycle is basically a molecular merry-go-round, ensuring our plants have the energy and compounds they need to thrive! 🌲🎠🌺

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Happy studying, young biologist! Keep diving deep into the wonders of our green world! 🌍🔍📚

Theme C - Interaction & Interdependence

Unlocking the Calvin Cycle: RuBP Regeneration!

Table of content

Triose phosphate

From triose to hexose & starch

The big starch problem