Tuesday, May 4, 2010

How would you explain the connection between glucose entering the body and energy created by the body to a friend?

Glycogen or starch are needed for the process of glycolysis to begin. Glycolysis has 10 steps.
1. Hydrolysis occurs- water breaks down glucose. A phosphate molecule is removed from ATP forming ADP and then the phosphate group is added to the glucose molecule forming Glucose-6-Phosphate.
2. The enzyme isomerase then reconfigures Glucose-6-Phosphate to Fructose-6-Phosphate
3. Fructose-1,6-biphosphate is created because 1 ATP phosphoralates Fructose-6-Phosphate
4. Fructose-1,6-biphosphate is cleaved creating glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate snf dihydroxyacetone phosphate.
5. Dihydroxyacetone phosphate is isomerized to glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate.
6. Oxidation and phosphorylation of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate to 1,3-biphosphoglycerate
7. A phosphate group is transferred from 1,3-biphosphoglycerate to ADP to make ATP an give 3-phosphaoglycerate.
8. 2-phosphoglycerate is formed through the isomerization of 3-phosphoglycerate
9. Dehydration of 2-phosphoglycerate occurs giving phosphoenolpyruvate
10. A phosphate group is transfered to ADP from phosphoenolpyruvate to form pyruvate.

The net gain of glycolysis is 2 ATP and 2 pyruvate molecules
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3 comments:

  1. GTT- Biochem ConnectionsMay 12, 2010 at 9:05 AM

    Hi Kathleen,

    Gee, you have "tecky" friends! My friends would kick me out if I used the words "isomerization" or "phosphoenolpyruvate." Just goes to show that you understood a lot more than I did in this course. I'll never forget that first day when I asked you how you already knew something that Dr. K gave us to do in class, and you said "I have learned this several times in all my other classes."

    Gale

    PS. I see you posted at 4:16am. Somehow I am not surprised to see that time for you!

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  2. KatieMay 14, 2010 at 7:07 AM

    I think that it is strange that glycolysis is the most complicated of the processes of turning one glucose molecule into the 30 ATP. The 10 steps only yeild 2 ATP and 2 NADH. Even the citric acid cycle of 8 steps yields more with 2 ATP, 2 FADH2, and 6 NADH. Electron transport/oxidative phosphoylation yield 26 ATP. Do you think there is a correlation between the length of the process and what it yields?

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  3. KathleenMay 15, 2010 at 6:21 AM

    I think the most difficult stage is transforming the glucose and once that is done it is easier to create ATP

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