2016 marked the 50th anniversary of the discovery of Hatch-Slack pathway, more popularly known as the C4 photosynthetic pathway in sugarcane leaves. Since then, there had been a significant development in understanding the C4 syndrome and its evolutionary background. C4 photosynthesis produces almost a quarter of the world’s entire primary productivity, despite having merely a few plant lineages to compete with. This clearly depicts the extraordinary capacity of the system to effectively trap carbon and converting it into plant biomass. It’s not a surprise that C4s represent some of the major crops in the world. This paper discusses the capacity of C4 photosynthesis, its advantage and limitations in producing plant biomass for the sustainable energy future of our planet. | C4 photosynthesis and biomass
