Home / Question Bank / Biology / Photosynthesis in Higher Plants / Question 7 NEET Biology Class 11 The C₄ pathway Hard Single correct
Plants such as maize and sugarcane show Kranz anatomy. They first fix CO₂ in their mesophyll cells using PEP carboxylase (PEPcase), and the Calvin cycle then operates in their bundle sheath cells. Which of the following correctly explains why this two-step strategy gives C₄ plants better productivity than C₃ plants? (A) PEP carboxylase directly reduces CO₂ to glucose in the mesophyll cells, making the Calvin cycle in the bundle sheath unnecessary (B) Kranz anatomy allows C₄ plants to run the entire Calvin cycle in the mesophyll cells, while bundle sheath cells only store starch (C) The C₄ acids formed by PEPcase in the mesophyll are broken down in the bundle sheath cells to release CO₂; this raises the CO₂ concentration at the RuBisCO site, so RuBisCO works as a carboxylase, its oxygenase activity is minimised and photorespiration does not occur (D) RuBisCO in C₄ plants has evolved a higher affinity for CO₂ than PEP carboxylase, which is why photorespiration never occurs in these plants Show answer and explanation ← Question 6 All Photosynthesis in Higher Plants questions Question 8 → More NEET Biology chapters © 2026 Lumi (Aikolumi Software Pvt Ltd). Original questions written by Lumi. Free to view and practise on this site. Copying, republishing or reproducing these questions, options or solutions, in print or online, is not permitted.
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