Human Phys background

ATP

primary energy currency of the cell

ADP

lower-energy form of ATP

Kinase

an enzyme that moves a phosphate group from a high-energy molecule, like ATP, onto a target substrate

Phosphatase

removes phosphate groups

Phosphorylation

addition of a phosphate group

NADPH

electron and hydrogen donor for biosynthesis

Active Transport

movement against a concentration gradient using energy

Calvin Cycle

uses ATP and NADPH to fix CO₂ into organic compounds

Central Dogma

The flow of genetic information: DNA → RNA → Protein.

Gene

A segment of DNA that contains instructions for making a functional product, usually a protein.

Transcription

Process of copying information from DNA into mRNA.

RNA polymerase

Enzyme that builds the RNA strand during transcription.

mRNA (messenger RNA)

Carries genetic instructions from DNA to the ribosome.

Translation

Process of using mRNA to build a protein.

Ribosome

Cellular structure that reads mRNA and assembles amino acids into a protein.

tRNA (transfer RNA)

Brings the correct amino acids to the ribosome during translation.

Codon

A group of 3 nucleotides on mRNA that specifies an amino acid or a stop signal.

Amino acid

Building block of proteins.

Protein

A chain of amino acids that folds into a functional structure.

Dehydration reaction

Joins small molecules together to form larger molecules, removing water.

Pyrophosphate (PPi)

Two linked phosphate groups. Its breakdown into two Pi helps drive biosynthetic reactions forward.

Nucleotide

The basic building block of DNA and RNA

Polymerized phosphate

Multiple phosphate groups linked together; important for energy transfer and cellular reactions.

substrate

Enzyme + _______ → Enzyme + Product

hydrolyze

to break a chemical bond using water

phosphate transfer potential

how strongly a molecule tends to transfer a phosphate group to another molecule

glycolysis

pathway that oxidizes one molecule of glucose into two molecules of pyruvate

2 ATP and 2 NADH

net yield of glycolysis

fermentation

converts the pyruvate produced by glycolysis into organic byproducts (such as lactate or ethanol) to oxidize NADH back into NAD+

fermentation

allows glycolysis to continue producing ATP in the absence of oxygen

electron transport chain

pumps protons from the mitochondrial matrix into the intermembrane space to create a concentration gradient

atpase

Breaks down ATP into ADP and a phosphate group. run backwards it is atp synthase