11.Explain the relationship between electron transport and oxidative phosphorylation. What does ATP synthase look like, and how does it work?
11.Explain the relationship between electron transport and oxidative phosphorylation. What does ATP synthase look like, and how does it work?
Proton gradient is created by the pumping of electrons and represents stored potential energy, and provides basis for a coupling mechanism.
“Oxidative phosphorylation is the process of ATP formation, when electrons are transferred by electron carriers from NADH or FADH2 to oxygen”
What is Oxidative Phosphorylation?
Oxidative phosphorylation is the final step in cellular respiration. It occurs in the mitochondria. It is linked to a process known as electron transport chain. The electron transport system is located in the inner mitochondrial membrane. The electrons are transferred from one member of the transport chain to another through a series of redox reactions.
Electron Transport Chain
Most of the biochemical catabolic processes like the citric acid cycle, glycolysis, beta-oxidation, etc. produce the coenzyme NADH. It consists of electrons having high transfer potential.
These reactions release a huge amount of energy on oxidation. These reactions are also known to be the uncontrollable reactions since the energy within the cells is not released at once.
The electrons are separated from the NADH and then passed to the oxygen with a series of enzymes releasing a small amount of energy. All these series of enzymes having complexes is known as electron transport chain.
This chain can be seen in the inner layer or membrane of mitochondria. The salts of succinic acid are also oxidized by this electron chain transport system.
In the case of eukaryotes, the enzymes make use of energy that has been released in the electron transport system from the oxidation of NADH that pumps protons across the inner membrane of the mitochondria. This results in the generation of the electrochemical gradient across the membrane. This can be considered as one of the best examples to understand the concept of oxidative phosphorylation.
What does ATP synthase look like, and how does it work?
ATP Synthesis
The H+ ions pass through an enzyme called ATP synthase while flowing back into the matrix. This controls the flow of protons to synthesize ATP.
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