Central Metabolism pt.2 Flashcards
how does ATP synthase use the PMF to synthesize ATP
the flow of protons in and around the subunit causes rotation in the membrane which rotates the subunit in the cytoplasm that catalyzes ATP synthesis - couples the energy release by the protons moving down the concentration gradient to the generation of ATP
why does the lack of oxygen lead to fermentation / what terminal electron acceptor is used
because there would be no terminal electron acceptor / broad diversity of terminal electron acceptors
what is the end product of fermentation / how many end products can it make
lots of different things such as lactic acid, ethanol, etc. / can make a single or multiple (mixed acid fermentations)
what does fermentation do for the electron carriers
it regenerates them
what happens to ATP during fermentation
it is used to run the ATP synthase in revers to generate the PMF for other cellular functions
what kind of respiration is unique to prokaryotes
anaerobic respiration
what is different about anaerobic respiration compared to fermentation
a lot more efficient at generating ATP, depends on the energy different between the electron donor and acceptor, can use a broad diversity of terminal electron acceptors and donors
what is microaerophilic / what is a negative of aerobic respiration / how do organisms deal with this
organisms that can use oxygen as a terminal electron acceptor / reducing oxygen creates toxic molecules / they have evolved enzymes to detoxify intermediates
what is the ranking for amount of ATP/glucose made in aerobic, anaerobic, and fermentation
up to 38 ATP/glucose, about 3-30 ATP/glucose, 2 ATP/glucose
how is waster water treated / what happens if there is more organic material than oxygen
through microbial metabolism - fountains pump oxygen into the water so their is enough for the microbes to decompose all of the organic matter / there would be no oxygen left in the water so when it is released back into the environment organisms would not be able to survive (dead zone)
what can the pilus of some microbes do / how does this help some biofilms
can function as a wire to conduct electricity - transfers electrons along the protein / the bacteria on the outer layers are able to deposit their electrons onto the surface (mineral) they are stuck to
what do some lithotrphs and geobacterias use as terminal electron acceptors / how is that helpful
use certain metals which allows to deposit the electrons on the metal which takes it out of solution (uranium) / can clean the infected areas of uranium
