ATP and You:
A Quick Refresher
ATP is the driving force for nearly all operations within a living cell. The process by which ATP is made is called Cellular Respiration. There are four major parts to Cellular Respiration and they are: Glycolysis, Pyruvate Processing, the Krebs Cycle (also referred to as the Citric Acid Cycle), and the Electron Transport Chain. We will mainly be looking at the Electron Transport Chain for the purposes of this website as this is where most of the ATP is synthesized. Each stage is very complex on its own so I will only dip our toes into the parts we are not focusing on.
Cellular respiration's main goal is to produce ATP. During the first three stages, the cycle's main focus is on making two important enzymes, NAD+ and FAD. Throughout the stages these molecules become NADH and FADH, both of which carry the protons and energized electrons used to create ATP in the Electron Transport Chain. If you want to learn more about Cellular Respiration I highly suggest checking out this video linked here. It goes into more detail and explains the process clearly.
Cellular respiration's main goal is to produce ATP. During the first three stages, the cycle's main focus is on making two important enzymes, NAD+ and FAD. Throughout the stages these molecules become NADH and FADH, both of which carry the protons and energized electrons used to create ATP in the Electron Transport Chain. If you want to learn more about Cellular Respiration I highly suggest checking out this video linked here. It goes into more detail and explains the process clearly.
The Electron Transport Chain
The Electron Transport Chain (ETC) is the final and most fruitful stage of Cellular Respiration. All the NADH and FADH2 created in the earlier stages are used here to create ATP. The enzymes NADH and FADH2 contain both an energized electron and either one or two H+ protons. These particles are utilized by proteins within a section of the inner mitochondrial membrane to make a proton pump between the inner and outer membrane of the mitochondrion. As either enzyme interacts with the first protein in their sequence, the electron is taken by the protein and its energy is used to pump H+ protons across the membrane (the video helps with visualizing this). This proton pump creates a concentration and charge gradient across the membrane. This potential energy is used to fuel the most important protein in this line-up, ATP Synthase.
ATP Synthase has the fun job of squishing together a phosphate group with ADP via a twisting motion to create ATP. ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) stores energy in the bond between ADP (Adenosine Diphosphate) and a third phosphate group. Hence the name change. All the phosphate groups do not want to be in a line connected together so there is "ample" energy -to the cell- stored in that bond just waiting to be released. The second image in the slideshow illustrates this well.
ATP Synthase has the fun job of squishing together a phosphate group with ADP via a twisting motion to create ATP. ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) stores energy in the bond between ADP (Adenosine Diphosphate) and a third phosphate group. Hence the name change. All the phosphate groups do not want to be in a line connected together so there is "ample" energy -to the cell- stored in that bond just waiting to be released. The second image in the slideshow illustrates this well.
A Quick Youtube Video on the Electron Transport Chain and ATP Synthesis |
Here are some helpful diagrams that illustrate electron transport chain |
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Daisy Herrman | Physics 212 | Spring 2019 | Web Project | April 12, 2019