BioChemistry Flashcards
Define Metabolism
is the sum of all chemical reactions that occur inside a cell
Where do humans get most of their energy from?
Carbs, proteins and fats
Does oxidation or reduction of digested food produce energy?
oxidation
Wich organ stores the most glycogen in terms of concentration?
liver
What stores the most glycogen in terms of amount?
skeletal muscle
dietary fuel that exceeds the body’s immediate energy needs is stored mainly as
glycogen and fat.
Explain how life evolved initially on Earth
Life may also have evolved without the Sun’s energy but harnessed the Earth’s heat and inorganic reduced compounds, metabolic intermediates form under conditions of such as those of deep sea vents
What are the two laws of biochemistry?
1) Energy is conserved (neither lost or made, just transformed) 2) The Universe is becoming more disordered
What does amphibolic mean?
Means both anabolic and catabolic occurs in an organism e.g. plants who use photosynthesis to produce energy and catabolic process of cellular respiration breaks it down. Humans are also amphibolic, as we make proteins and DNA
Explain brown fat
Brown fat is full of mitochondria, and these are very inefficient, but generate heat Brown fat increases in cold challenged adult mammals…if lean (less insulation)
Rank food sources that gives the most amount of energy? in kJ/g
• Carbohydrate • Protein • Alcohol • Fat
At any one time, the average human body holds x grams of ATP, holding
At any one time, the average human body holds 250 grams of ATP, holding
Useful energy is captured from ____ bonds (e.g.____) and transferred to ATP following ______
Useful energy is captured from reduced bonds (C-C and C-H) and transferred to ATP following oxidation
What are the main daily energetic expenditures in the body?
Basal Metabolic Rate, Activity (exercise) and then Feeding (specific dynamic action)
How to measure energy in an energy source?
calorimeter
Rank the caloric content of common food sources in terms of kcal/g:
Carbs, Protein, Alcohol then fat (has the most calories per gram)
Rank in terms of weight where most of the humans’ sources of energy stores are:
Liver Glycogen, Muscle glycogen, protein and fat
What are the Three Stages of Catabolism?
Hydrolysis of complex molecules to their building blocks Conversion of building blocks to Acetyl CoA Oxidation of acetyl CoA – oxidative phosphorylation
Why is ATP the universal energy currency?
Adenosine has a shape (motif) that has been harnessed by many enzymes and proccess over billions of years
Are Phosphoanhydride bonds in ATP relatively stable in water?
Yes
Explain what happens when ATP is hyrdolyzed twice:
ATP can be hydrolyzed twice to ADP and AMP, with two hydrolysis events per “fuel” molecule.
When Other anhydride bonds are possible and may yield more energy per mole, why is it not used and why is ATP used?
they are not as stable in water as ATP is
What are other energy sources besides ATP used by organisms?
cells use GTP, TTP, UTP and also creatine phosphate (CrP), but ATP is the most abundant.
Where is creatine phosphate found?
brain, and voluntary muscles
How does ATP work in terms of the ‘molecular spring’?
The negative charges repel each other, making ATP unstable It generates a “molecular spring” that can force other reactions, or cause shape and charge changes in other molecules, e.g. myosin in muscles, membrane channels….
The ____ (∆fG0) of ATP is greater than the sum of the “_______” of ADP + Pi
The free energy of formation (∆fG0) of ATP is greater than the sum of the “products of formation” of ADP + Pi
What are the Laws of thermodynamics and life?
1) Energy can not be created or destroyed, it just changes form 2) The Universe is becoming increasingly disordered
Explain the first law ‘Energy can not be created or destroyed, it just changes form’, in terms of an equation
ΔH = q + w The change in enthalpy = heat + work done
Explain the second law ‘2) The Universe is becoming increasingly disordered’
The second law of thermodynamics states that systems will progress towards increased entropy (It also predicts that time can not be reversed – well not in this Universe)
Write the equation of gibbs free energy:
ΔH- TΔS= ΔG
What does Gibbs free energy show us?
• This predicts whether a reaction is going to, or can occur spontaneously • It predicts the maximum possible change (the potential) in concentrations between reactants and products
The more negative (- ΔG) the more _____!!!!!
The more negative (- ΔG) the more work can be done!!!!!! (and more spontaneous the reaction)
Does Gibbs free energy predict the rate of reaction?
no
What die a positive gibbs free energy show?
the reaction will not occur spontaneously, energy must be invested to make this process occur
What is Glycolysis?
Splitting of sugar (glyco-lysis): Glucose, - 6 carbon (6C) molecule is trapped using phosphate, rearranged and split into 2 x 3C molecules
Does glycolysis only happen to glucose?
No
How many ATP are produced in glycolysis?
2 ATP are first invested, 4 more added (2 not using ATP) then all harvested so 2 ATP produced in total
In the metabolism of fuels there are 2 reaction types:
• 1) Rearrangement/preparation • 2) Oxidation
The only bonds we get energy from by oxidation are from
C-H bonds
Why is the rearrangement step necessary?
Energy from C-C bonds = that of C-H, but C-Cs are not oxidised directly in biology, so need to be rearranged
What are the three types of oxidation reactions?
1) Conversion of alcohol to ketone 2) alkane to alkene 3) aldehyde to an acid
Which is the only oxidation reaction that happens in glycolysis?
aldehyde to an acid (Also protects the cell from the aldehyde (think formaldehyde!))
Biological Redox reactions are undertaken by what enzymes?
Dehydrogenases
Cellular respiration has three stages:
– Glycolysis – The Citric Acid Cycle – Oxidative phosphorylation
Can Glycolysis anaerobic or aerobic?
anaerobic
What does Hexokinase and Glucokinase do?
Glucose is trapped! They add phosphate (it is negatively charged,) Also changes the glucose’s shape so GLUT can not recognise it
Where is hexokinase found?
most tissues
Where is glucokinase found?
liver and beta cells
Explain hexokinase’s affinity for its substrate
hexokinase has a very high affinity for its substrate
Explain glucokinase’s affinity for its substrate
glucokinase has a very low affinity for its substrate
Which kinase enzyme can be inhibited by glucose-6-phosphate?
hexokinase
Explain hexokinase’s saturation in comparison with glucokinase:
Hexokinase gets saturated much faster but absorbs it faster, while glucokinase takes a longer time to become saturated.
a high KM means a __ affinity
a high KM means a low affinity
Glucokinase has a ____ KM than hexokinase for glucose
Glucokinase has a higher KM than hexokinase for glucose • Therefore it has a lower affinity for glucose!
Explain the trapping and investment step:
Glucose now trapped in the cell Phosphate is charged and glucose is no longer recognised by GLUTs Glucose-6-Phosphate is now tagged for other things
Explain rearrangement step:
Glucose is rearranged to fructose shape
Explain commitment and investment step:
After fructose shape has been made, ATP gets converted to ADP
Explain each stage of the glycolysis reaction:
Explain where each major enzyme is placed in the glycolysis reaction:
PFK is regulated by several things:
Inhibited by high ATP (why make more?)
AMP activates PFK (i.e. not very much ATP, make more!)
Too many protons (decreased pH) inhibits PFK (save fuel, demands too high on metabolism?)
Explain the role of lactate dehydrogenase
NADH is oxidized to NAD+ anaerobically
LDH can go forwards and backwards, explain how lactate is involved in the Cori Cycle.
Is the heart good at using lactate?
Yes
What is the purpose of mitochondrial fusion?
mitochondrial fusion enhances ATP production
WHat is the purpose of mitochondrial fission?
mitochondrial fusion protects mitochondria from degradation
Does NADH or FADH2 have more reeox potential?
NADH
What is the role of NADH oxidase?
It is in the electron transport cycle,
It works as a proton pump
Pumps 4 protons per NADH