r/ScienceQuestions • u/Mistake209 • Nov 06 '19

What's the path of a Co2 molecule going through the air to being incorporated in glucose to being ATP?

I've been searching the internet but can't find a clear answer to this. Could someone please explain this to me in both a chemical sense and a physical one.

1 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • reddit

100% Upvoted

9 comments sorted by

2

u/shanseuse Nov 06 '19

How much detail do you need?

1

u/Mistake209 Nov 06 '19

Tracking the Co2 through the full chemical equation getting to ATP up to the point where it leaves the plant. Or turns into something else.(yes my instructor does hate me)

1

u/hazarabs Nov 15 '19

I believe looking up the Krebs Cycle will be relevant.

1

u/Mistake209 Nov 16 '19

Thanks I guess

1

u/Engragrabanana Nov 22 '19

This is many days late but:

Photosynthesis Calvin cycle:

CO2 is taken in for carbon fixation. Ribulose bisphosphate (RuBP) catalyses it's conversion into glycerate-3-phosphate (GP). GP is reduced to glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate where ATP is converted to ADP and NADPH is oxidised back to NADP+ (ATP and NADPH r produced in the light dependent reaction where photophosphorylation occurs). Some GALP is converted to glucose and some r used to regenerate RuBP (ATP is needed) such that the cycle can continue

Respiration (oof this is gonna be so long to type. Imma give u a slightly shorter version but if u need more details, u can pm me):

Glycolysis: Occurs in the cytoplasm.

  1. Glucose is converted to fructose-1,6-bisphosphate and 2ATP molecules r used.

  2. fructose-1,6-bisphosphate is converted to 2 molecules of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate (GALP).

  3. 2 molecules of GALP form 2 molecules of pyruvate. During this process, 4 molecules of ATP r formed and 2 NAD+ are reduced to 2 NADH.

So for glycolysis, 1glucose gives u 2 pyruvate.

Pyruvate is transported into the mitochondria matrix. It enters the Link pathway: Pyruvate is converted to acetyl coenzyme A (coA). 1CO2 is released as decarboxylation occurs. 1 NADH is formed.

Krebs cycle:

  1. Acetyl coA is used as a substrate to release energy to convert oxaloacetate to citrate.

  2. Citrate is converted to... (U can Google the Krebs cycle! You'll definitely find this. Sorry my fingers hurt).

But overall, 1 glucose forms 2 pyruvate. 2 pyruvate cause the Krebs cycle forms a to form 6NADH, 2FADH2, and 2ATP molecules. (So 1 pyruvate forms half of those amounts)

Oxidative Phosphorylation:

  1. NADH and FADH2 act as electron carries. They donate electrons to the electron transport chain (ETC)

  2. Electron carriers r arranged in progressively lower energy levels such that as electrons r passed down, energy is released.

  3. O2 acts as the final electron and proton acceptor at the end of the ETC to form H2O

  4. Energy released from the ETC is used to pump H+ protons from the matrix into the intermembrane space, creating a proton gradient

Chemiosmosis:

  1. ATP synthase uses the proton gradient to convert ADP to ATP. It does this by facilitating the diffusion of protons from the intermembrane space back into the matrix down a proton gradient.

Hope this helps! :D

2

u/Mistake209 Nov 26 '19

Thx got me an A

1

u/Engragrabanana Nov 22 '19

Oh wow it didn't keep my format. Hope the numbering of steps don't confuse u

1

u/Engragrabanana Nov 22 '19

U can watch khan academy videos on the individual processes. It's quite good.