Electron Transport Chain Flashcards
What is the electron transport chain made of and where is it?
It is a series of electron carriers, found in the inner membrane of the mitochondria.
How does NADH supply the two electrons to the first carrier in the chain?
Through picking up the lost electrons during other processes of cell respiration.
How do the 2 electrons pass along the chain of carriers?
They give up energy each time.
At how many points along the chain is there enough energy for ATP to be made by ATP synthase?
Three points.
What is oxidative phosphorylation?
The production of ATP using energy derived from the redox reactions of an electron transport chain.
When is oxidative phophorylation used in the electron transport chain?
When the ATP production relies on energy released by oxidation.
Where does ATP synthase occur?
In the inner mitochondrial membrane.
Describe what FADH2 can do in the electron transport chain.
FADH2 can feed electrons into the chain (like NADH), but there are only TWO stages at which there is enough energy released for ATP production by electrons from FADH2. FADH2 can only help at a slightly later stage than NADH can.
What happens to electrons once they reach the end of the electron transport chain?
The electrons are given to oxygen. Oxygen also accepts hydrogen ions and forms H2O.
What is the only stage in cell respiration of which oxygen is used?
The end of the electron transport chain to create H2O.
What happens if there is no oxygen available at the end of the chain?
The chain stops, and therefore NADH+H+ cannot be reconverted to NAD+, which means that the supplies of NAD+ run out in the mitochondria, which means that the link reaction and the Krebs cycle cannot continue.
Why can glycolysis continue without oxygen?
Because the conversion of pyruvate into the waste products (lactate/CO2 and ethanol) produces as much NAD+ as is needed for glycolysis.
What’s the difference in the production of ATP between aerobic cell respiration and glycolysis?
Aerobic yields about 30 ATP while glycolysis yeilds 2.
How are the proton pumps energized?
They utilize the energy released as electrons pass along the transport chain.
What does a concentration gradient store?
Potential energy.
