Biochemical Energy Production

Citric Acid Cycle and Electron Transport Chain

anabolism

a metabolic reaction that consumes energy in which small biochemical molecules are joined together to form larger ones

catabolism

a metabolic reaction that releases energy in which large biochemical molecules are broken down to smaller ones

digestion

the biochemical process by which food molecules, through hydrolysis, are broken down into simpler chemical units that can be used by cells for their metabolic need

citric acid cycle

a series of biochemical reactions in which the acetyl portion of acetyl CoA is oxidized to carbon dioxide and FADH2 and NADH are produced

acetyl CoA

it is the fuel for the citric acid cycle

electron transport chain

a series of biochemical reactions in which electrons and hydrogen ions from NADH and FADH2 are passed to intermediate carriers and react with molecular oxygen to produce water

Oxidative Phosphorylation

the biochemical process by which ATP is synthesized from ADP as a result of the transfer of electrons and hydrogen ions from NADH or FADH2 to O2 through the electron carriers involved in the ETC

chemiosmotic coupling

refers to an explanation for the coupling of ATP synthesis with ETC reactions that requires a proton gradient across the inner mitochondrial membrane

protein complexes

acts as proton pumps, transferring protons from the matrix side of the inner mitochondrial membrane to the intermembrane space

pyruvate

a precursor for Krebs cycle production of acetyl CoA

metabolism

the sum total of all the biochemical reactions that take place in a living organism

metabolic pathway

a series of consecutive biochemical reactions used to convert a starting material into an end product