 | Dr Peggy G Lemaux
cooperative extension specialist in plant biotechnology at the University of California in Berkeley
The basic formula for photosynthesis: 6CO2 +6H2O + sunlight/chlorophyll ---> 6O2 + C6H12O6
I would nominate the basic formula for photosynthesis: 6CO2 + 6H2O + sunlight/chlorophyll ---> 6O2 + C6H12O6. Why is this so important? Because without this chemistry, life on Earth would not be possible. Glucose - C6H12O6 - is the basic energy source for all living organisms. The oxygen released as a photosynthetic byproduct, principally of phytoplankton, provides most of the atmospheric oxygen vital to respiration in plants and animals. And animals, in turn, produce carbon dioxide necessary for plants. Therefore, photosynthesis is considered the ultimate source of life for nearly all plants and animals, by providing the energy required to drive their metabolic processes. Without this important reaction, life on this planet would cease. See Peggy Lemaux's website.
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