| Question | Answer |
| Key points | Also known as citric acid or TCA cycle
Final pathway of oxidative metabolism
Produces most ATP
Occurs inside mitochondria
Produces reduced cofactors
Several synthetic reactions
Not a closed circle |
| Where does this fit in | In the course of substrate oxidation, pathways from all substrates converge on a small pool of common molecules
Acetyl CoA or one of the krebs cycle intermediates |
| What does the krebs cycle do | Common intermediates can be completely oxidised to CO2 and H2O or used as starting materials for biosynthetic pathways
C13 labelling used to trace carbons through the cycle
NADH and FADH2 for oxidation and energy yield
Produces energy in form of GTP |
| What are NADH and FADH2 | Electron acceptors - become reduced
Used in lots of metabolism
NADH - pyridine dehydrogenases - more energy stored
FADH2 - flavin dehydrogenases - less energy stored |
| Use of NADH | A substrate/product of reaction not a cofactor
Diffuses away from the enzyme to complex 1 |
| Use of FADH2 | Covalently bound to enzyme as cofactor - cant diffuse to inner membrane - enzymes must be physically associated with membrane
Lower reducing potential - cant reduce NAD so feeds electrons into ETC at ubiquinone at Complex 2 |
| Brief overview | Acetyl CoA combines with oxaloacetate to form citrate
Citrate forms isocitrate
Decarboxylated to from alpha ketoglutarate then succinyl-CoA releasing Co2 and NADH
SLP into succinate releasing GTP
Converted to fumarate, malate and back to oxaloacetate |
| Enzymes involved from Oxaloacetate | Citrate synthase
Aconitase
Isocitrate dehydrogenase
Alpha ketoglutarate dehydrogenase
Succinyl CoA synthase
Succinate dehydrogenase
Fumarase
Malate dehydrogenase |
| Key reactions | 2 carbons enter cycle
2 molecules of CO2 released
Substrate level phosphorylation
4 reduced cofactor molecules released |
| What energy does this produce | 3 HADH - 7.5
FADH2 - 1.5
GTP - 1
so 10 ATP |
| Where does Acetyl CoA come from | Fatty acids - beta oxidation
Ketone bodies - ketone body oxidation
Amino Acids - amino acid degradation
Sugars - glycolysis and PDH |
| Pyruvate dehydrogenase | Pyruvate converted to acetyl coA
Released NADH and CO2 |
| Pyruvate transport into mitochondria | Via specific pyruvate H symport |
| Oxidative decarboxylation of pyruvate | Enzymes - pyruvate decarboxylase, dihydrolipoyl transferase and dihyrdolipoyl dehydrogenase
Cofactors - Thiamine pyrophosphate and lipoic acid
Releases NADH and CO2 |
| Pyruvate dehydrogenase complex | One enzyme complex contains all enzymes required for PDH
A lipoamide arm bound to E2 guides the substrate from one subunit to the next |
| Why control PDH | Irreversible
Costs energy
Committed steps - point of no return
Energy sensing
Cannot resynthesis glucose past this point
Inhibited by ATP and stimulated by ADP |
| Control of PDH | Inhibited directly by NADH and acetyl CoA
Inactivated by PDH kinase (activated by ATP acetyl CoA and NADH inactivated by ADP pyruvate acetyl CoA and NAD)
Activated by PHD phosphatase (activated by Ca, Mg and insulin) |
| Arsenic poisoning | Inhibits enzymes that use lipoic acid as cofactors
pyruvate dehydrogenase, (branched chain) alpha ketoglutarate dehydrogenase
Arsenic forms stable complex with thiol group of lipoic acid
Inhibiting PDH increases pyruvate and lactate |
| Acetyl CoA + oxaloacetate | Combined by citrate synthase to form citrate
Condensation reaction
Inhibited by ATP, Citrate, NADH, succinyl CoA FA CoA
Activated by ADP, |
| Citrate - formed isocitrate | Converted to alpha ketoglutarate by isocitrate dehydrogenase
Oxidative decarboxylation
Released NADH and CO2
Activated by ADP and calcium
Inactivated by ATP and ANDH |
| Mutations in IDH | Mutations in IDH1/2 are found in 60-90% of secondary gliomas and 12-18% of leukaemia
Originally thought to be blockage of TCA cycle leading to Warburg effect
Shown that mutations lead to production of 2-HG - an oncometabolite |
| Alpha ketoglutarate | Converted to succinyl CoA by alpha ketoglutarate dehydrogenase
Oxidative carboxylation
Uses lipoic acid and thiamine pyrophosphatase as coenzymes
Releases CO2 and NADH
Activated by Ca
Inactivated by ATP, GTP, succinyl CoA and NADH |
| BeriBeri | Thiamine deficiency
Neurological and cardiac symptoms e.g. sheep like gait
TPP is a prosthetic group of pyruvate dehydrogenase, alpha ketoglutarate dehydrogenase and transketolase
Increase plasma pyruvate |
| Succinyl CoA | Converted to succinate by succinyl CoA synthase
Thioesterase reaction
Substrate level phosphorylation to release GTP |
| GTP | Phosphoryl donor in protein synthesis, gluconeogenesis
Signal transduction
Translocation of proteins into mitochondrial matrix
Conversion to ATP via nucleoside diphosphokinase |
| Succinate | Converted to fumarate by succinate dehydrogenase
Oxidation
Releases FADH2 |
| Succinate dehydrogenase | Embedded in inner mitochondrial membrane
Directly linked to the electron transport chain
Only enzyme common to both TCA cycle and ETC
FAD is hydrogen acceptor as free energy not enough to reduce NAD
2 electrons from FADH2 transferred directly to QH2 |
| Accumulation of succinate in ischaemia | Severe damage caused to ischaemic tissue on reperfusion
Lack of O2 in ischaemia blocks SDH and leads to build up of succinate
During reperfusion ETC overwhelmed by succinate leading to reverse electron transport causing production of ROSs |
| Malate | Converted to oxaloacetate by malate dehydrogenase
Oxidation
Releases NADH |
| Evidence - Szent Gyorgyi | Studied process of respiration on breast muscle of pigeons
Minced the tissue and showed it took up oxygen rapidly
Oxygen uptake was rapidly increased when carbohydrates of their C3 products were added
Also true for C4 salts |
| Evidence - Krebs and Johnson | Animal tissue can make succinate if given pyruvate
Succinate came from oxidation of citrate via a series of reactions shown in the liver
Citrate did not disappear during this so must be reformed
Via reformation from oxaloacetate |
| Why a cycle | Small amounts of cycle intermediates required to oxidise large amounts of acetyl CoA
Only small amount of oxaloacetate needed as constantly regenerated
If enzymes blocked becomes an open pathway - need a source of intermediates |
| Control via calcium | Activation of receptor leads to calcium release from ER stored
Calcium in matrix activates pyruvate dehydrogenase, isocitrate dehydrogenase, alpha ketoglutarate dehydrogenase
Specific transport alters mitochondrial calcium to refelect cytoplasmic change |
| Other roles of the TCA cycle | Route of disposal for amino acids and odd chain fatty acids e.g. his, pro, gln, arg feed into alpha ketoglutarate
Intermediates are starting points for biosynthesis e.g. citrate for fatty acids and oxaloacetate for glucose
Linked to lots of reactions |
| Disadvantages of the cycle | Removal of intermediates can deplete levels e.g. for biosynthesis
Need anaplerotic reactions to maintain conditions
AAs form alpha ketoglutarate, fumarate and oxaloacetate
Valine, isoleucine and odd chain FAs form succinyl CoA
Pyruvate - oxaloacetate |