Chapter 8 - Metabolism Flashcards
Pathway that begins with a certain molecule which is then altered in a series of defined steps, resulting in a certain product; each step is catalyzed by a specific enzyme
Metabolic pathway
Totality of an organism’s chemical reactions
Metabolism
Degradative processes; breakdown pathways
Catabolic pathways
Consume energy to build complicated molecules from smaller ones; bio synthetic pathways
Anabolic pathways
Study of how energy flows through living organisms
Bioenergetics
Capacity to cause change
Energy
Energy of motion
Kinetic energy
Energy based on an object’s structure or location
Potential energy
Energy associated with the random movement of atoms or molecules
Thermal energy
Thermal energy in transfer from one object to another
Heat
Potential energy available for a chemical reaction
Chemical energy
Study of energy transformations that occur in a collection of matter
Thermodynamics
The energy of the universe is constant: “Energy can be transformed or transferred but not created or destroyed.”
First law of thermodynamics
Quantity used to measure disorder, randomness
Entropy
“Every energy transfer or transformation increases the entropy of the universe.”
Second law of thermodynamics
A process that by itself leads to an increase in entropy that can proceed without requiring the input of energy
Spontaneous process
Portion of the system’s energy that can perform work when temperature and pressure are uniform throughout a system
Free energy
Energy outward; proceeds with a net release of free energy
Exergonic reaction
Energy inward; absorbs free energy from its surroundings
Endergonic reaction
Use of an exergonic reaction to drive an endergonic one
Energy coupling
Ribose with adenine and a chain of 3 phosphate groups bonded to it; plays a role in energy coupling and the making of RNA
ATP
A molecule with a phosphate group covalently bonded to it making it more reactive than an unphosphorylated molecule
Phosphorylated intermediate
A macromolecule (protein) that acts as a catalyst
Enzyme
Chemical agent that speeds up a reaction without being consumed by the reaction
Catalyst