Question

An example of ${C_4}$ plant is
A. Maize
B. Rice
C. Wheat
D. Potato

Answer 1

${C_4}$ pathway is the pathway in which carbon fixation occurs at compounds containing four carbon compounds. It has high resistance to the environment with high daytime temperatures, intense sunlight, drought, or nitrogen, etc. Maize has high tolerance to the surrounding and carbon dioxide fixation occurs at four carbon compounds.

Complete answer:
Plants include various pathways to produce energy. Mainly two types of reactions occur in plants: Light reaction and Dark reaction. Light reaction occurs in the presence of light while dark reaction is independent to the light. Dark reactions involve two pathways: ${C_3}$ and ${C_4}$ pathways to produce carbohydrate and energy. Carbon fixation is the main role of these pathways.
${C_4}$ cycle occurs in both mesophyll and bundle sheath cells. From the name of the scientist who identified this reaction, it is also called a hatch and slack pathway. In this cycle $C{O_2}$ is first bound to a phosphoenolpyruvate in mesophyll cells which results in the formation of four carbon compounds. After that it will be decarboxylated to liberate the $C{O_2}$ so that it can be utilized in the ${C_3}$ pathway. ${C_4}$ plants have better adaptation in the surrounding environment than ${C_3}$ plants. They have processes that allow them to utilize $C{O_2}$ down to much lower levels than ${C_3}$ plants.
Examples of ${C_4}$ plants: Sugarcane, Maize, Sorghum, Amaranth, etc.
In ${C_3}$ plants, Carbon dioxide fixation only occurs at one place. Wheat, Rice and potato have a ${C_3}$ photosynthetic pathway to convert light energy into sugar. Carbon dioxide fixation occurs to obtain a 3-carbon organic intermediate molecule of 3-phosphoglycerate with the help of RuBisCo enzyme.
From the above information we know that an example of a ${C_4}$ plant is maize.

So, the correct answer is option A.

Note: As the amount of $C{O_2}$ is increasing day by day in the atmosphere, ${C_4}$ plants are certainly not going to be at a disadvantage under warmer, potentially moisture-limiting conditions. Various projects are going on which focus on the development of ${C_4}$ versions of ${C_3}$ plants. It will be of great benefit for the crop production. Most of the ${C_4}$ plants have special leaf anatomy.