Cellular Respiration And Photosynthesis Similarities
There are millions of organisms on earth, and new ones are being discovered all the time, yet all living organisms perform one or both of two very important processes; cellular respiration and photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is performed by plant organisms and some bacteria, and cellular respiration is performed by all living organisms. These two processes are reliant on each other. Photosynthesis creates oxygen, which is used in cellular respiration. Cellular respiration in turn creates carbon dioxide, which is an important “ingredient” in the process of photosynthesis. Let’s take a closer look at what makes these processes so important to all living things.
Photosynthesis is the process plants use to convert light energy from the sun into …show more content…
At first, it is difficult to dig through this. It all seems so convoluted, because they are so closely related. For example, in photosynthesis, plants take in carbon dioxide (CO2),and release oxygen, while in cellular respiration, the cell takes in oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. In this way alone, these reactions rely on each other, so that it becomes very difficult to pick the most essential. Because photosynthesis occurs only in plant cells, you could argue that it is less important that cellular respiration, but that is not the case. Plants are at the base of the food chain. All animals get energy from what they eat, and plants get their energy from the sun. So, technically, all of the food chain gets it’s energy indirectly from the sun, and, therefore, from photosynthesis! Well, now it sounds like photosynthesis is more important than cellular respiration. But wait! All living organisms need energy to perform life functions. All living organisms perform cellular respiration to convert the chemical bonds of food to ATP energy. Now - where does this energy in the food come from? Photosynthesis! Photosynthesis provides energy for not only plants, but for all of the food chain! It also provides oxygen for cellular respiration. Now you can see why Photosynthesis is such an important and mandatory part of the biological
Photosynthesis is the process plants use to convert light energy from the sun into …show more content…
At first, it is difficult to dig through this. It all seems so convoluted, because they are so closely related. For example, in photosynthesis, plants take in carbon dioxide (CO2),and release oxygen, while in cellular respiration, the cell takes in oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. In this way alone, these reactions rely on each other, so that it becomes very difficult to pick the most essential. Because photosynthesis occurs only in plant cells, you could argue that it is less important that cellular respiration, but that is not the case. Plants are at the base of the food chain. All animals get energy from what they eat, and plants get their energy from the sun. So, technically, all of the food chain gets it’s energy indirectly from the sun, and, therefore, from photosynthesis! Well, now it sounds like photosynthesis is more important than cellular respiration. But wait! All living organisms need energy to perform life functions. All living organisms perform cellular respiration to convert the chemical bonds of food to ATP energy. Now - where does this energy in the food come from? Photosynthesis! Photosynthesis provides energy for not only plants, but for all of the food chain! It also provides oxygen for cellular respiration. Now you can see why Photosynthesis is such an important and mandatory part of the biological