Membrane energetics Flashcards
Redox reactions are those in which electrons move from a ______ to a ______
from a donor (reductant/reducing agent) to an electron acceptor (oxidant/oxidizing agent).
What is the standard reduction (electrode) potential ?
The equilibrium constant for the redox reaction
What is the standard reduction potential a measure of?
the tendency of the reductant to lose electrons.
Oxidant/reductant pair is referred to as?
The redox couple
If the E’ is more negative, the compound is more likely to?
Donate electrons
- act as the reductant
- becomes oxidized
If the E’ is more positive, the compound is more likely to ?
Accept electrons
- act as the oxidant
- becomes reduced
Redox couples with more ____ reduction potentials will donate electrons to couples with more ____ potentials.
negative, positive
What is released when electrons move from a reductant to an oxidant with a more positive potential?
free energy (ΔGo’)
what is the equation for (ΔGo’) ?
ΔGo’ = -nFΔE’
where n = number of electrons transferred
F = Faraday constant (96.5 kJ/mole/volt)
What is ∆E?
E’ of reduction - E’ of oxidation
What are the 4 types of electron carriers?
- Flavoproteins
- Quinones
- Iron-sulphur proteins
- Cytochromes
What are flavoproteins? What kind of carriers are they?
Proteins with a flavin (which acts as the electron carrier)
-ex: FMN and FAD
Act as hydrogen and electron carriers
What are examples of quinones? What kind of carriers are they?
Coenzyme Q, ubiquinone
Act as hydrogen and electron carriers
What are iron-sulphur proteins and give 1 example? What kind of carriers are they?
FeS clusters within the proteins are the electron carriers
-ex: Ferredoxin
Act as electron carriers only
What are cytochromes? what kind of carriers are they?
use heme as the electron carrier.
Act as electron carriers only
How does FAD act as an electron carrier
Accepts 2 electrons and 2 protons to form FADH2
How do quinones act as electron carriers?
By accepting an electron and a proton to go from O- to OH
What are the 3 possible forms of ferredoxins?
2Fe2S, 3Fe4S, or 4Fe4S
What is the general structure of a heme group? What does this structure permit?
Highly conjugated ring system (which allows electrons to be very mobile) surrounding a metal ion
The metal ion readily converts between the oxidation states
-typically iron
which 3 complexes in the ETC are coupling sites?
Complexes I, III, and IV
- coupled to proton extrusion
- also called proton pumps
What happen at complex I ?
NADH is oxidized to NAD+ and 2 protons are pumped out
What happens at complex II?
FADH2 is oxidized to FAD+
What happens at complex III?
2 protons are pumped out
-electrons are transferred to complex 3 from ubiquinone in complex 2
What happens in complex IV?
electrons flow from cytochrome c to cytochrome a and then to cytochrome a3
finally transferred to O2 which is reduced to H20
2 protons are pumped out
How many protons are extruded if FADH2 is the electron donor
only 4 because you skip complex 1
In which 2 general ways do bacterial ETCs vary ?
- Vary among species
2. Vary among the same species under different growth conditions
Describe the general ETC for a bacteria under aerobic conditions (2 main points)
- Dehydrogenase complex removed electrons from an electron donor and transfers them to a quinone
- Transfer of electrons from the quinone to an oxidase complex via a branched pathway
- depending on the bacteria the pathways may branch at the quinone or the cytochrome
Describe the general ETC for a bacteria under anaerobic conditions (3 steps)
- Dehydrogenase complex removed electrons from an electron donor and transfers them to a quinone
- Electrons transferred to reductase complexes
- specific for each electron acceptor - the final electron acceptor is an inorganic compound that insn’t oxygen
- ex: fumarate and NO3-
How is light generated by photobacterium?
By diverting the flow of electrons from the usual ETC and into FMN
in the presence of an enzyme called luciferase and a long-chain hydrocarbon, the alternate chain emits light as it transfers electrons to O2
In the photobacteria producing light, which compounds are oxidized and which are reduced?
FMN and the hydrocarbon are oxidized and oxygen is reduced
Are free living photobacteria generally bioluminescent?
Not usually
- typically when they colonize the tissues of marine animals such as squid and fish that they use their light-generating pathway.
What special adaptation does the flashlight fish have?
(K. alfredi), has a special organ near its mouth that is specially adapted for the growth of luminescent bacteria.
What is oxidative phosphorylation ?
Process by which energy is used from the ETC to produce ATP
As many as __ ATP can be made when 2 electrons pass from NADH through to a molecule of O2
3 ATP
ATP synthesis is catalyzed by
F1F0ATPase