CHAPTER 8 Flashcards
(38 cards)
chemical reaction
occurs when atoms have enough energy to combine or change bonding partners
metabolism
sum total of all chemical reactions occurring in a biological system at a given time; reactions involve energy changes
energy
capacity to do work, or the capacity for change
What are the types of energy?
CHEMICAL - stored in bonds
ELECTRICAL - separation of charges
HEAT - transfer due to temperature difference
LIGHT - electromagnetic radiation stored as photons
MECHANICAL - energy of motion
potential energy
energy stored as chemical bonds, concentration gradient, or change imbalance
kinetic energy
the energy of movement
anabolic reactions
complex molecules are made from simple molecules; energy is required
catabolic reactions
complex molecules are broken down into simpler ones; energy is released
laws of thermodynamics
apply to all matter and all energy transformations in the universe; help us to understand how cells harvest and transform energy to sustain life
What are the first two laws of thermodynamics?
1st - energy is neither created nor destroyed
2nd - when energy is converted from one from to another, some of that energy becomes unavailable to do work; disorder tends to increase because of energy transformations
entropy (S)
a measure of the disorder in a system; it takes energy to impose order on a system; unless energy is applied to a system, it will be randomly arranged or disordered
enthalpy (H)
total energy
free energy (G)
usable energy that can do work; does not change in enzyme-substrate complex
H = G + TS
unusable energy is represented by entropy (S) multiplied by the absolute temperature (T)
exergonic
reactions that release free energy (-ΔG)
endergonic
reactions that consume free energy (+ΔG)
chemical equilibrium
balance between forward and reverse reactions, a state of no net change, ΔG = 0
ATP (adenosine triphosphate)
captures and transfers free energy; can be hydrolyzed to ADP and Pi, releasing a lot of energy for endergonic reactions; can also phosphorylate (donate a phosphate group to) other molecules, which gain some energy; formation is endergonic and combined with hydrolysis they couple endergonic and exergonic reactions
catalysts
increase rates of chemical reactions; not altered by the reactions
enzymes (proteins)
biological catalysts that act as a framework in which reactions can take place; lower the energy barrier by bringing the reactants together; highly specific; its 3D shape determines its specificity; can increase reaction rates by 1 million to 10 to the 17 times (10^17)
activation energy (Ea)
the amount of energy required to start the reaction; can come from heating the system
transition state
reactive mode that activation energy puts the reactants in
transition state intermediates
activation energy changes the reactants into unstable forms with higher free energy
substrates
reactants; bind to the active site of the enzyme