Energy: The Redox Reactions

These flashcards cover key vocabulary terms and concepts related to energy, redox reactions, and metabolic pathways involved in cellular respiration.

Oxidation

The loss of electrons from a substance during a redox reaction.

Reduction

The addition of electrons to a substance during a redox reaction.

Catabolic Pathways

Metabolic pathways that release stored energy by breaking down complex molecules.

Cellular Respiration

The catabolic breakdown of organic molecules for energy, involving both aerobic and anaerobic processes.

Redox Reaction

A reaction that involves the transfer of electrons between two reactants.

NAD+

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, an electron carrier that functions as an oxidizing agent during respiration.

Electron Transport Chain

A series of protein complexes in the mitochondrial membrane that shuttle electrons.

Chemiosmosis

The process of using a hydrogen ion gradient across a membrane to drive cellular work, such as ATP synthesis.

ATP Synthase

A protein complex that produces ATP from ADP and inorganic phosphate using energy from a proton gradient.

Fermentation

A way of harvesting chemical energy without using an electron transport chain, involving glycolysis and reactions that regenerate NAD+.

Aerobic Respiration

Respiration that occurs in the presence of oxygen, utilizing the electron transport chain for ATP production.

Anaerobic Respiration

Respiration that occurs without oxygen, can involve pathways such as fermentation.

Substrate-level phosphorylation

A direct transfer of a phosphate group from a substrate to ADP to form ATP.

Oxidative Phosphorylation

The production of ATP using the electron transport chain and the process of chemiosmosis.

Citric Acid Cycle

A series of biochemical reactions that generate ATP and electron carriers NADH and FADH2 by oxidizing acetyl CoA.

Glycolysis

The metabolic process that converts glucose into pyruvate, yielding small amounts of ATP and NADH.

Acetyl CoA

A highly reactive compound formed from the oxidation of pyruvate; feeds into the citric acid cycle.

Brown Fat

A type of fat that can generate heat by uncoupling oxidative phosphorylation, allowing protons to flow without producing ATP.

Proton-Motive Force

The force created by a hydrogen ion gradient that drives protons back across the membrane through ATP synthase.