BIOENERGETICS TOPIC 9

This set of flashcards covers key terms and concepts in bioenergetics, focusing on energy transfer, metabolic pathways, and enzyme functions.

Bioenergetics

The study of the transformation of energy in living organisms.

Metabolism

The sum of all chemical processes that occur within a living organism.

Glycolysis

The breakdown of glucose into pyruvate, yielding energy in the form of ATP.

Citric Acid Cycle (Krebs Cycle)

A series of enzymatic reactions that oxidize acetyl-CoA to carbon dioxide and hydrogen atoms, producing ATP, NADH, and FADH2.

Oxidative phosphorylation

The metabolic pathway where cells use enzymes to oxidize nutrients, thereby releasing energy, which is used to produce ATP.

Redox reactions

Chemical reactions involving the transfer of electrons, resulting in oxidation (loss of electrons) and reduction (gain of electrons).

Enthalpy (H)

The total heat content of a system, related to the heat exchanged in reactions.

Entropy (S)

A measure of disorder or randomness in a system; higher entropy means a higher degree of disorder.

Free energy ()

The energy in a physical system that can be converted to do work; it indicates the spontaneity of a reaction.

Activation energy (EA)

The minimum energy required for a chemical reaction to occur.

ATP (adenosine triphosphate)

The primary energy carrier in living organisms, composed of ribose, adenine, and three phosphate groups.

Chemiosmosis

The process of ATP synthesis driven by the movement of protons across a membrane during electron transport.

Photosynthesis

The process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods with the use of carbon dioxide and water.

Light reactions

The initial phase of photosynthesis, which converts solar energy into chemical energy in the form of ATP and NADPH.

Calvin Cycle

The set of chemical reactions that take place in chloroplasts during photosynthesis; it uses ATP and NADPH to convert CO2 into glucose.

Aerobic respiration

A biological process that uses oxygen to convert glucose into ATP, producing carbon dioxide and water as byproducts.

Anaerobic respiration

A biological process that occurs in the absence of oxygen, often resulting in fermentation.

Competitive inhibition

A type of enzyme inhibition where the inhibitor competes with the substrate for the active site of an enzyme.

Non-competitive inhibition

A form of enzyme inhibition where the inhibitor binds to an enzyme at a site other than the active site, altering the enzyme's function.

Cofactor

A non-protein chemical compound that is required for the biological activity of some enzymes.

Catalyst

A substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction without itself undergoing any permanent chemical change.

Photosystems

Protein and pigment complexes in chloroplasts that absorb light energy for photosynthesis.