In sugarcane, the initial carbon fixation occurs in the mesophyll cells. Which of the following correctly identifies the primary CO₂ acceptor and the enzyme responsible for this reaction?

Step-by-step solution

Sugarcane is a C₄ plant. In the Hatch-Slack pathway ( C₄ pathway), the initial carbon fixation takes place in the mesophyll cells. The primary CO₂ acceptor is a 3-carbon molecule, Phosphoenol pyruvate (PEP), and the enzyme responsible for catalyzing this carboxylation is PEP carboxylase (PEPcase). Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate (RuBP) and RuBisCO are involved in the Calvin cycle ( C₃ pathway), which occurs in the bundle sheath cells of C₄ plants. Oxaloacetic acid (OAA) is the first stable product of the C₄ pathway, not