Electron Transport System and Oxidative Phosphorylation Flashcards
Principle of oxidative phosphorylation
- NADH and FADH2 contain energy obtained from catabolism - get reoxidised by transferring electrons to components of Electron Transport System (ETS)
- Energy is released as electrons are transferred along ETS
- This energy is used to convert ADP + Pi to ATP i.e. ATP synthesis.
E0
- measure of tendency of a molecule in solution to give or take electrons, to or from an electrode under standard conditions relative to a standard hydrogen electrode
How is free energy released from electron transport?
- ETS is effectively composed of a series of redox pairs - each has its own redox potential E0
- Tendency to donate electrons to other compounds = reducing agent
- Tendency to accept electrons from other compounds = oxidising agent
Oxidation and reduction
- oxidation: lose electrons
- reduction: gain electrons
- OILRIG; Oxidation Is Loss, Reduction Is Gain
Redox potentials and free energy
- In ETS, electrons are passed from one redox pair to the next – eventually to O2
- acceptor must have a more positive redox potential than the donor
Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide (NAD+)
- first electron carrier involved in the oxidation of many metabolites
- NAD+ is oxidised form, NADH is reduced form
Inner mitochondrial membrane
- where enzymes of the ETS and ATP synthase are found
Inner membrane cristae
- increase membrane surface area and its impermeability allows the establishment of chemical gradients
Electron Transport System (ETS)
- function is to regenerate NAD+ and FAD, with free energy released used to generate ATP, and with the reduction of oxygen to water
- consists of 4 large protein complexes: I to IV, and 2 small, mobile carriers
- each complex contains various cofactors/coenzymes which are required for the transfer of electrons from one complex to the next
Carriers of ETS
- flavoproteins (with FMN or FAD)
- non-haem iron (iron sulphur complex)
- quinone
- cytochromes (with haem groups)
Flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD)
- transfers electrons as hydrogen atoms
- When combined to appropriate proteins, FAD can accept two H atoms and is reduced to FADH2
- FAD is a prosthetic group = it is covalently attached to the apoenzyme
- Isoalloxazine ring-ribitol-phosphate-phosphate-ribose-adenine
Flavin Mononucleotide (FMN)
- Prosthetic group – similar to FAD but without AMP
- No positive charge; isoalloxazine ring structure
- Accepts two protons and two electrons
- reduced to FMNH2 in two steps: H+ + FMN –> FMNH and H+ + FMNH –> FMNH2
Non-haem iron
- Non-haem bound iron found in iron-sulphur clusters
- 4 types – classed on number of atoms of each present: [Fe-S], [2Fe-2S], [3Fe-4S], [4Fe-4S]
- Bound to protein via 4 cysteines.
Cytochromes
- Electron-transporting proteins with haem as prosthetic group
- iron in haem is a single-electron carrier
- ETS contains several different cytochromes
- cytochromes b, c1, c, a and a3
Cytochrome b
- transmembrane protein composed of two subunits - cytochrome bL and bH
Cytochrome c1
- Found associated with non-haem iron and located in outer layer of phospholipid bilayer
Cytochrome c
- Peripheral protein on cytosolic surface of inner membrane.
- Bound to cytochrome c1 and cytochrome oxidase - acts as ‘electron shuttle’ between them.
Cytochrome a and a3
- Transmembrane protein composed of two distinct haem groups.
- Also has copper associated – CuA and CuB
Ubiquinone (Coenzyme Q - Q10)
- called because of ubiquitous “expression” and its 10 isoprenoid residue hydrophobic tail
- non-protein lipid soluble molecule – freely mobile in the phospholipid bilayer
- receive 2 protons and two electrons - quinone is reduced to hydroquinone
- link between Complex I or II and Complex III
- move protons from the matrix to inter-membrane space
Complex I
- oxidize NADH and reduce CoQ
- Large membrane spanning complex, contains binding sites for NADH and CoQ
- Contains 6-7 Fe-S clusters through which e- are carried in a zig-zag pattern and transferred to CoQ
- Net movement of protons occurs – provide energy for ATP synthesis
Complex II
- oxidize succinate via the generation of FADH2
- not enough energy to pump H+ across the membrane
- also not a membrane spanning complex, like complex I, so cannot act as a proton pump
- Contains binding sites for succinate and Coenzyme A
- FADH2 then reduces Coenzyme Q
Complex III
- oxidize CoQ and reduce Cytochrome c
- similar to Complex I - large membrane spanning complex that contains binding sites for CoQ and Cytochrome c
Q cycle
- Transfer of 2e- from CoQ to cytochrome c1
- Composed of 2 loops
- Results in pumping of 4H+ across the membrane
Complex IV
- oxidize cytochrome c and reduce oxygen to water
- large membrane spanning complex, contains binding sites for cytochrome c and molecular oxygen
- bound copper facilitates the collection of the 4 electrons needed to reduce O2