In the light-independent reaction carbon dioxide gets converted into glucose, and the glucose is further required in the process of cellular respiration. The reaction is also termed as dark reaction as it does not require light, it is also known as the Calvin cycle.
During the reaction, the carbon in the carbon dioxide is fixed to ribulose-1,5 bisphosphate to produce 3-phosphoglyceric acid and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate.
Some amount of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate is used in the formation of glucose, while the enzyme Rubisco with the assistance of ATP transforms the remaining of the glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate into ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate permitting the cycle to restart again. ATP and NADPH formed at the time of light dependent reaction provide the chemical energy required to maintain the light-independent reactions.
