Chapter 9 Flashcards
(95 cards)
How does the hoary marmot (Marmota caligata) obtain energy?
By feeding on plants.
How is chemical energy stored in food used to generate ATP?
Plant/animal cells break down organic molecules by cellular respiration in the mitochondria, and the chemical energy is transformed into chemical energy in ATP while some energy is released to the environment as heat.
What is the catabolic pathway?
Energy enters ecosystems as light and exits as heat, the chemical elements essential to life are recycled.
Photosynthesis uses CO2 and H2O to make organic molecules and H2O.
Cellular respiration uses O2 and organic molecules to make ATP; CO2 and H2O are produced as waste.
How do catabolic pathways produce energy?
Release stored energy by breaking down complex molecules. Electron transfer from food molecules to other molecules plays a major role in these pathways. These processes are central to cellular respiration.
What is fermentation?
A partial degradation of sugars that occurs without oxygen.
What is aerobic respiration?
Consumes organic molecules and oxygen and yields ATP. Anaerobic respiration is similar to aerobic respiration but consumes compounds other than oxygen.
What is cellular respiration?
Includes both aerobic and anaerobic respiration but is often used to refer to aerobic respiration.
Although carbohydrates, fats, and proteins are all consumed as fuel, it is helpful to trace cellular respiration with the sugar glucose.
Do catabolic pathways directly power the cell?
No; they are linked to work by ATP. Cells must constantly regenerate their supply of ATP from ADP and phosphate.
What does the transfer of electrons during chemical reactions do?
Releases energy stored in organic molecules. This energy is ultimately used to synthesize ATP.
What are redox reactions?
Chemical reactions that transfer electrons between reactants, also called oxidation reduction reactions.
What is oxidation?
In redox reactions, the loss of electrons from a substance is called oxidation.
What is the addition of electrons to a substance called?
Reduction. (The amount of positive charge is reduced)
In sodium chloride reactions, what becomes reduced and what becomes oxidized?
Sodium becomes oxidized (Na+)
Chlorine becomes reduced (Cl-)
What is a reducing agent?
The electron donor. It reduces the electron acceptor.
What is the oxidizing agent?
The electron acceptor. It oxidizes the electron donor.
What happens when redox reactions don’t fully transfer electrons?
Change electron sharing in covalent bonds.
Oxygen atoms are very electronegative and attract electrons but do not share them equally.
The partial “gain” of electrons by O atoms and the partial “loss” of electrons by their bonding partners constitutes a redox reaction.
When does an electron lose potential energy?
When it shifts from a less electronegative atom toward a more electronegative one.
Redox reactions that move electrons closer to electronegative O atoms release energy.
What molecules are excellent sources of high energy electrons?
Organic molecules with an abundance of hydrogen.
What is cellular respiration considered?
Redox process; energy is released as hydrogen and electrons are transferred to O atoms.
What does the oxidation of glucose do?
Transfers electrons from a higher energy state (in glucose) to a lower energy state with O atoms. This releases energy that is to be used to synthesize ATP.
How are glucose and other organic molecules oxidized in cellular respiration?
In a series of steps; each electron travels with a proton- a hydrogen atom. Hydrogen atoms are usually first passed to electron carries rather than directly to O2.
What is NAD+?
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide. A coenzyme that functions as an electron carrier.
As an electron acceptor, NAD+ functions as an oxidizer. Each NADH (reduced form of NAD+) represents stored energy that is tapped to synthesize ATP.
What are dehydrogenases?
Enzymes that remove a pair of hydrogen atoms (2 electrons and 2 protons) from the substrate.
The 2 electrons and 1 proton is transferred to NAD+, forming NADH. The other proton is released as a hydrogen ion (H+) into the surrounding solution.
What happens if NADH transfers electrons directly to oxygen?
Energy would be released in one explosive reaction.