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Discussion 1
Questions
Principles of Metabolism
1. What are the properties of ATP that make it a particularly appropriate high energy molecule for
biological processes?
2. The following reactions of glycolysis illustrate several important types of reaction:
1. Oxidation reactions in catabolic pathways
2. Coupled reactions
3. Substrate-level phosphorylation reactions
NAD+ + Pi NADH + H+ ADP ATP
Identify the enzyme illustrating each of these types of reactions and explain the biological
significance of this type of reaction.
3. The Gibbs Free Energy change (G) for the following reaction
X Y
is
[Y]
!G = RTlnKeq + RTln
[X]
Using this equation, explain how changes in metabolite concentrations can make this reaction
thermodynamically favorable in one direction or the other.
What is the relevance of this property for the operation of anabolic and catabolic pathways such as
glycolysis and gluconeogenesis.
4. The velocity of an enzyme catalyzed reaction is usually described by the Michaelis-Menton
Equation:
k[E][S]
V=
Km + [S]
Regulation of metabolism involves controlling the rate of specific enzyme-catalyzed reactions.
Briefly describe one biological mechanism by which each component of the Michaelis-Menton
rate equation (k, [E], [S], and Km) can be regulated to control the velocity of an enzyme-catalyzed
reaction.
1. Briefly indicate the circumstances which would favor homolactate fermentation versus alcohol
fermentation as the mechanism for regeneration of NAD+ for glycolysis.
2. What are the consequences of O2 limitation for the continued operation of the citric acid cycle?
Explain both what would happen if O2 is not available and why these effects would happen.
Hexose Metabolism
1. Briefly identify the two general mechanisms by which sugars are converted to components of the
glycolytic pathway by drawing the structure of 1-step conversion of mannose-6-P to a metabolite
of a central metabolic pathway. Identify the nature of the reaction by labeling the arrow with the
appropriate name.
CH2 OP
O
H H
H
OH HO
HO OH
H H
CH2 OP
O
H H
H
OH HO
HO OH
H H
UDP-Galactose UDP-Glucose