Biology 2 - How Plants use Glucose
How do plants use glucose for respiration ?
- plants manufacture glucose in their leaves. - then they use some of the glucose for respiration - this releases energy which enables them to convert the rest of the glucose into various other useful substances which they can use to build new cells and grow. -to produce some of these substances they also need to gather a few minerals from the soil.
How is glucose stored as starch ?
- glucose is turned into starch and stored in roots, stems and leaves ready for use when photosynthesis isn't happening like in the winter. - starch is insoluble which makes it much better for storing than glucose - A cell with lots of glucose in with draw in loads of water and swell up.
How is glucose stored in seeds ?
Glucose is turned into lipids, which are fats and oils, for storing in seeds. sunflower seeds, for example, contain a lot of oil, we get cooking oil and margarine from them. seeds also store starch.
How do plants use glucose for making proteins
Glucose is combined with nitrate ions which are absorbed from the soil to make amino acid's which are then made into proteins.
How do plants use glucose for making cell walls ?
Glucose is converted into cellulose for making strong cell walls especially in a rapidly growing plant.