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Proton and Electric Charge Translocation in Mitochondrial Energy Transduction

  • Chapter
Structure and Function Relationships in Biochemical Systems

Part of the book series: Advances in Experimental Medicine and Bioligy ((AEMB,volume 148))

Abstract

Despite the fact that oxidative phosphorylation was first discovered over 40 years ago, we do not yet know precisely how ATP is generated from ADP and phosphate during mitochondrial respiration. This may seem rather paradoxical, since the synthesis of ATP coupled to mitochondrial electron transport is one of the most dynamic processes in cells and necessary for most of their activities. For example, a 70 kg adult with a caloric intake of 3000 kcal per day must generate almost 400 moles of ATP per day, if we therefore assume the standard free energy is +7.5kcal/mol. This amounts to about 190 kg of ATP, or 2.5 times his body weight. Since the body contains altogether only about 50 gm of ATP, the terminal phosphate group of body ATP must turn over several thousand times per day.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physiological Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Albert L. Lehninger

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  1. Albert L. Lehninger
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  1. University of Rome, Rome, Italy

    Francesco Bossa , Alessandro Finazzi-Agrò  & Roberto Strom ,  & 

  2. CNR Center of Molecular Biology, Rome, Italy

    Emilia Chiancone

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© 1982 Plenum Press, New York

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Lehninger, A.L. (1982). Proton and Electric Charge Translocation in Mitochondrial Energy Transduction. In: Bossa, F., Chiancone, E., Finazzi-Agrò, A., Strom, R. (eds) Structure and Function Relationships in Biochemical Systems. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Bioligy, vol 148. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-9281-5_14

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-9281-5_14

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

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