Removing the Electron Transport Chain from Cellular Respiration

Cellular Respiration converts oxygen and sugar (glucose) into water, carbon dioxide, and energy (ATP). All eukaryotic celled organisms go through the process of cellular respiration which takes place in the mitochondrion. There are three connected processes that complete cellular respiration, each producing a certain amount of ATP molecules. The three processes are Glycolysis, the Kreb’s Cycle (Citric Acid Cycle), and the electron transport chain (ETC). Glycolysis occurs in the cytoplasm of a eukaryotic cell which splits glucose (6 carbon molecules), into 2 pyruvic acids’ which each are 3 carbon molecules. The Kreb’s Cycle occurs in the matrix. It uses 1 carbon from the pyruvic acid and is used to make carbon dioxide when it combines with 2 molecules of oxygen. The other 2 carbon molecules combine with 4 carbon molecules to create a citric acid compound consisting of 6 carbon molecules. Two of these carbon molecules break apart and split up, combining with molecules of oxygen to make 2 compounds of carbon dioxide This process creates a total of 3 carbon dioxide molecules and continues to repeat and recycle the remaining 4 carbon molecules. The final process is the Electron Transport Chain which creates the most ATP energy molecules. Electrons move from NADH and go to the electron carrier. The electrons then travel through ETC and force hydrogen ions into the inter-membrane space of the mitochondrion. Then, the electron readies the last electron carrier and combines hydrogen ion and oxygen to create H₂O.  The inter-membrane space is hypertonic so the hydrogen ions travel through ATP synthase to the matrix. The ATP synthase joins ADP and phosphate in order to create ATP molecules.

The Electron Transport Chain is a very important process of cellular respiration. Although all three stages of Cellular Respiration generate and produce energy (ATP), ETC produces the most of the three. If ETC no longer took place during the process of Cellular Respiration; it would cause many changes to occur. Eukaryotic cells are within all animals, plants, fungi, and protista organisms. This means that a change in Cellular Respiration would affect all these organisms because the mitochondrion will not produce as many ATP molecules, causing a loss of energy and affecting their ability to perform. The ETC produces 32-34 of 36-38 ATP molecules in each process, which would be a 90% decrease in the amount of energy produced each cycle. The effects of this could result in the mitochondrion being pushed and exerting them too much, or a deep decrease in energy levels and ability to perform. The Electron Transport Chain is composed mostly of proteins, which help a person’s body, as well as other organisms, to build tissues, muscles, and other vital parts of the body structure. Loss of this could result in very deathly results, causing major problems due to the lack of stored protein.

Finally, the ETC uses oxygen directly. This would result in unused/unchanged oxygen molecules in the atmosphere. This could possibly lead to the inability to convert oxygen into CO₂, carbon dioxide, and result in an overdose of oxygen within the body and atmosphere, not being able to get rid of it by turning it to carbon dioxide. This would then affect organisms, such as plants, who consume CO₂.

As you can see by these possibilities, the removal of the Electron Transport Chain could have devastating results for all organisms containing eukaryotic cells and that go through the process of Cellular Respiration, including all animals, plants, protista, and fungi organisms.



Resources and Citations

"Cellular Respiration." About.com Biology. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2012. http://biology.about.com/od/cellularprocesses/a/cellrespiration.htm.

"Electron Transport Chain." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 29 Dec. 2012. Web. 18 Dec. 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electron_transport_chain.

"The Electron Transport Chain Steps Simplified." DBrierscom. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2012. http://www.dbriers.com/tutorials/2012/04/the-electron-transport-chain-simplified/.