LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET

QUARTER 2nd / SEMESTER 1st, Week 1

Name: _______________________________________________ Score: _______

Grade & Section: ________________________ Subject: GENERAL BIOLOGY 1

Name of Teacher: _________________________________ Date: _____________

I. Title: Importance of Chlorophyll and Other Pigments

II. Type of Activity: Concept notes with formative activities
LAS for summative assessment ( Written Work Performance Task)

III. MELC: Explain the importance of chlorophyll and other pigments

(STEM_BIO11/12-IIa-j-3).

IV. Learning Objective/s:

 Discuss the importance of chlorophyll and other pigments;
 Realize the role of chlorophyl in food production for plants.

V. Reference/s

Online Resource/s:
Biologydictionary.net Editors. (2016). Chlorophyll. Retrieved from
https://biologydictionary.net/chlorophyll/

Flint, D. 2017. Importance of pigments in photosynthesis. Retrieved from

https://sciencing.com/importance-pigments-photosynthesis-
6461024.html

VI. Concept Notes

IMPORTANCE OF CHLOROPHYLL AND OTHER PIGMENTS

Pigments are colorful chemical compounds that reflect light of a specific
wavelength and absorb other wavelengths. Leaves, flowers, coral, and animal skins
contain pigments that give them color. Photosynthesis is a process taking place in
plants and can be defined as a conversion of light energy to chemical energy. It is a
process by which green plants produce carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water
by the help of chlorophyll (green pigment in plants) in the presence of light energy.

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Chlorophyll

Chlorophyll is a molecule produced by plants, algae and cyanobacteria which

aids in the conversion of light energy into chemical bonds. Chlorophyll is known as a
pigment, or molecule that reflects some wavelengths of light, while absorbing others.
Pigments produce a variety of colors in the plant and animal world. Chlorophyll is a
green pigment, and is responsible for the green color of plants and algae.

In plants, there are two specific forms of chlorophyll: chlorophyll

a and chlorophyll b. Each form of chlorophyll absorbs slightly different wavelengths
of light. As seen in the graph below, chlorophyll a absorbs dark blue wavelengths and
dark red wavelengths. Chlorophyll b absorbs a light blue wavelength and a reddish-
orange wavelength. Plants have both forms of chlorophyll, which allows them to
absorb most blue wavelengths and most red wavelengths. The large dip in the middle
of the graph near the green wavelengths is due to chlorophyll reflecting, instead of
absorbing, green light.

Chlorophyll c is not found in plants but is found in some microorganisms

capable of performing photosynthesis. Carotenoid pigments are found in many
photosynthetic organisms, as well as in plants. They absorb light between 460 and
550 nm and hence appear orange, red, and yellow. Phycobilin, a water-soluble
pigment, is found in chloroplast.

Functions of Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll in the Biosynthesis of Sugars
Plants use both forms of chlorophyll to collect the energy from light. Chlorophyll
is concentrated in the thylakoid membranes of chloroplasts. Chloroplasts are the
organelles in which photosynthesis takes place. The thylakoids are small sacs of
membrane, stacked on top of each other. Embedded in these membranes are a variety
of proteins that surround chlorophyll. These proteins work together to transfer the
energy from light, through chlorophyll, and into the bonds of ATP – the energy
transferring molecule of cells. ATP can then be used in the Calvin cycle, or dark cycle,
to create sugars.

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 The series of proteins that transfer energy from light and channel it into the
synthesis of sugars are known as photosystems. The entire process, both light and
dark cycles together, is known as photosynthesis, and occurs in plants, algae, and
some bacteria. These organisms take in carbon dioxide (CO2), water (H2O) and
sunlight to produce glucose. They can use this glucose in the process of cellular
respiration to create ATP, or they can combine the glucose into more complex
molecules to be stored.

Chlorophyll in the production of oxygen

A by-product of photosynthesis is oxygen. Plants can use this oxygen in cellular

respiration, but they also release excess oxygen into the air. This oxygen allows many
non-plants to undergo respiration as well, thereby supporting life on Earth. The oxygen
is produced in the first part of the light cycle of photosynthesis. Plants split water
molecules to produce electrons, hydrogen ions, and diatomic oxygen (O2). The
electrons supply the electron transport chain that drives ATP production. The oxygen
is released into the air. In this way, all the oxygen we breathe is produced.

Benefits of Chlorophyll

Because of chlorophyll, all life on Earth is possible. The first benefit of

chlorophyll is sugar, produced through the process of ATP which is driven by
chlorophyll. Plants, as primary producers, produce the basis of the food chain. All other
organisms in the food chain rely on the sugars that plants create to sustain life. While
the top predators in a food chain may never eat a single plant, they most certainly eat
herbivores. These herbivores only eat plants, and grow and create muscle by
digesting and utilizing plant nutrients. The accumulation of these nutrients in nature
would not be possible without chlorophyll. The second benefit realized by all
organisms is oxygen. While chlorophyll does not produce oxygen directly, chlorophyll
and the complex of proteins it is associated with transfer electrons to molecules like
ATP and NADPH, which can hold energy in bonds. The need for electrons to drive this
process causes water molecules to be split, creating oxygen. This oxygen is released
into the atmosphere. Plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, produce all of the oxygen in
the atmosphere. All other animals, and most plants, need this oxygen to survive.

VII. Performance Task

In this experiment, you'll be able to observe the chlorophyll in leaves and to see
what a leaf looks like without its chlorophyll.
To carry out the experiment, you'll need:
 a small pan;
 tweezers;
 a glass;
 a container of warm water;
 rubbing alcohol;
 a green leaf (needles won't work as well).

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 Begin by boiling little amount of water in the pan. You don't need very much,
just a few centimeters in the pan will do. Turn off the heat. Put the leaf into the water
and let it steep for no more than 30 to 60 seconds. Use the tweezers to take the leaf
out of the water, then carefully put it into the glass. Cover the leaf with rubbing alcohol,
then sit the glass in the container of warm water and leave it for an hour. Document
your experiment and send it in print or digitally to your teacher.

Answer the following questions.

a. What did you notice when you came back?

b. What color was the leaf?

c. What color was the liquid in the glass?

d. What do you think are the reasons behind you result?