BCH 202: Biological oxidation II and III- Oxidation-reduction potential, Biooxidative

enzymes, coenzymes and inhibitors of oxidative phosphorylation.

Biological oxidation II

Oxidation-reduction potential Biological oxidation is the combination of oxidation-reduction

transformations of substances in living organisms. In biochemistry, it involves the transfer of
negatively charged electron from one organic compound to another organic compound or to
oxygen. It is very important to energy generation and conservation in cells. It is often
accompanied by the process of respiration. In living organisms, Respiration is defined as the
utilization of oxygen by cells for the derivation of energy in the form of ATP from the controlled
reaction of hydrogen with oxygen to form water.

Figure 1: Schematic representation of biological oxidation

The concept of biological oxidation is controlled by the concept of oxidation and reduction. In
terms of electrons, Oxidation is defined as the loss/removal of electrons whereas Reduction is
defined as the gain/addition of electrons.

Thus, the ability of a substance to participate in an oxidation/reduction reaction is measured by

its reduction potential.

Table 1: The standard reduction potentials for some important reactions:

Oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) also measures the ability of a lake or river to cleanse itself
or break down waste products, such as contaminants and dead plants and animals.
Free energy changes (ΔG) an oxidation-reduction (redox) potential

For instance, when the ORP value is high, there is enough oxygen present in the water and the
healthier the lake or river will be. This means that bacteria that decompose dead tissue and
contaminants can work more efficiently. However, even in healthy lakes and rivers, there is less
oxygen (and there are lower ORP values) as one gets closer to the bottom sediments or mud.
This is because there are many bacteria working hard in the sediments to decompose dead tissue,
and they use up a lot of the available oxygen. In fact, oxygen disappears very quickly in the
bottom mud (often within a centimeter or two) and ORP falls quickly. ORP is measured in
addition to dissolved oxygen because ORP can provide scientists with additional information of
the water quality and degree of pollution, if present. Also, there are other elements that can
function like oxygen (in terms of chemistry) and contribute to increase in ORP.

How to measure oxidation-reduction potential: ORP is measured directly in the lake or river
water that you are investigating using an ORP sensor. ORP is measured in millivolts (mV) and
the more oxygen that is present in the water, the higher the ORP reading. ORP can either be
above zero or below zero.

However, measuring ORP in biological samples has been successful in major trauma and
strenuous exercise. Such fluids that can be analyzed include whole blood, cerebrospinal fluid,
sweat, saliva, and urine. The imbalance in oxidation and reduction potential as compared with
the standard is regarded as Oxidative stress (OS) “OS may be reflected through an abnormal
ORP value”. OS can be measured with many different assays, both directly and indirectly. Direct
assays measure total ROS in the semen sample while the indirect assays either provide total
antioxidant levels or measure markers of lipid peroxidation. Advanced andrology laboratories
have adapted the ORP assessment technique for detecting OS in semen samples by using the
MiOXSYS system to directly obtain a composite measurement of known and unknown oxidants
and antioxidants that play a role in OS and male infertility. As future studies are conducted,
ORP‟s ability to monitor the effect of antioxidant treatments will be well understood.

Why does oxidation-reduction potential matter? ORP depends on the amount of dissolved
oxygen that is in the water, as well as the amount of other elements that function similarly to
oxygen. Though not technically correct, oxygen and other elements that contribute to high ORP
effectively help „eat‟ things that we don‟t want in the water – such as contaminants and dead
tissues. When ORP is low, dissolved oxygen is low, toxicity of certain metals and contaminants
can increase, and there is lots of dead and decaying material in the water that cannot be cleared
or decomposed. This is obviously not a healthy environment for fish or bugs. In healthy waters,
ORP should read high between 300 and 500 millivolts. In the North, we might expect low ORP
in waters that receive sewage inputs or industrial waste.

Factors affecting measurement of ORP

1. Reactant concentration

2. Physical state of the reactant

3. Surface area

4. Temperature

5. Presence of a catalyst

Biological oxidation of biomolecules or macromolecules

Metabolic Source of Energy Some of the biomolecules (carbohydrates, proteins, lipids) often
called metabolic fuels are degraded for the extraction of energy via series of oxidations, whereby
pairs of electrons are transferred from the metabolic fuels, through series of electron carriers for
the production of cellular energy named ATP (Adenosine-5‟triphosphate).

1st stage: Macromolecules (polymers) are converted to monomers within the cytosol

i. Protein - Amino acids (the building block of protein) e.g. Alanine, tyrosine, cysteine,
tryptophan, serine

ii. Lipid Fatty acids (the building block of lipid) e.g. Lauric acid, Arachidonic acid, Stearic
acid

iii. Carbohydrate Monosaccharide (the building block of carbohydrate) e.g. Glucose, galactose,
fructose
2nd stage: The oxidized building blocks such as glucose, galactose, lauric acid, arachidonic acid,
alanine, and glycine are converted to acetyl co-A within the mitochondria

The oxidized building blocks Acetyl co-A

3rd stage: Oxidation of acetyl Co-A in the mitochondria via the Tricarboxylic acid (TCA) or
Krebs cycle to form intermediates such as citrate, alpha-keto glutarate, succinate, malate, and
thereafter produce oxygen (O2).

4th stage: Occurs in the mitochondria where there is transfer of electron pairs in acetyl Co-A to
electron carriers such as:

i. NAD+ (oxidized Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide) to form NADH (reduced

Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide)
ii. ii. FAD (oxidized Flavin Adenine Dinucleotide) to form FADH2 (reduced Flavin
Adenine Dinucleotide).

Thereafter, oxidative phosphorylation takes place which will convert NADH and FADH2 to
cellular energy (ATP).

Metabolic oxidation

The oxidation of metabolic fuels involves a large number of enzymes that require Coenzyme
which act as Electron carriers. The most important coenzymes that act as electron carriers
include:

i. NAD+ (oxidized Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide) in the mitochondria

ii. ii. FAD (oxidized Flavin Adenine Dinucleotide) in the mitochondria and
peroxisomes
iii. iii. FMN (Flavin Mononucleotide) in the mitochondria and peroxisomes

iv. NADPH (reduced Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide Phosphate) in the cytoplasm of cells
and it is formed in the pentose phosphate pathway.

ATP generation via the Electron Transport System (ETS)

The ETS is known as the major consumer of oxygen in cells. This system accepts energy from
carriers (NADH, FAD, FMN) in the mitochondrial matrix and stores the energy in the form that
can be used to phosphorylate

What are the steps of oxidative phosphorylation?

1. Delivery of Electrons by NADH and FADH2. Reduced NADH and FADH2 transfer their
electrons to molecules near the beginning of the transport chain. ...
2. Electron Transport and Proton Pumping. ...
3. Splitting of Oxygen to form Water. ...
ATP Synthesis. aerobically

What are the 2 types of oxidative phosphorylation?

Oxidative phosphorylation has two parts:

A. Electron Transport Chain (ETC) and chemiosmosis: is a collection of proteins bound to

the inner mitochondrial membrane and organic molecules, which electrons pass through
in a series of redox reactions, and release energy.
B. Chemiosmosis: is a biological process wherein ions (usually protons, H+) are moved to
the other side of the membrane resulting in the generation of an electrochemical gradient
that can be used to drive ATP synthesis.

What are the 2 types of oxidative phosphorylation?

Oxidative phosphorylation has two parts:

A. Electron Transport Chain (ETC) and chemiosmosis: is a collection of proteins bound to

the inner mitochondrial membrane and organic molecules, which electrons pass through in a
series of redox reactions, and release energy.

B. Chemiosmosis: is a biological process wherein ions (usually protons, H+) are moved to
the other side of the membrane resulting in the generation of an electrochemical gradient that
can be used to drive ATP synthesis.
Enzymes involved in oxidation and reduction are called oxidoreductases and are classified into
four groups: oxidases, dehydrogenases, hydroperoxidases, and oxygenases.

1. Oxidases- are enzymes involved when molecular oxygen acts as an acceptor of hydrogen
or electrons i.e. use oxygen as a hydrogen acceptor.

2. Dehydrogenases- catalyze the oxidation of a substrate through the transfer of hydrogen

(hydride) to an acceptor (or co-enzyme). They are classified according to the donor
group, e.g. alcohol or aldehyde, and the acceptor

3. Hydroperoxidases:: Enzyme that reduces a peroxide to an alcohol.

 4. Oxygenases: is involved in the transfer of oxygen molecules to a substrate. The reaction
oxidises the substrate by transporting oxygen from molecular oxygen (oxygen found in
the air) to the substrate.

What are oxidative enzymes and examples?

An oxidative enzyme is an enzyme that catalyses an oxidation reaction. Two most
common types of oxidative enzymes are peroxidases, which use hydrogen peroxide, and
oxidases, which use molecular oxygen. They increase the rate at which ATP is produced
aerobically

What are the 2 types of oxidative phosphorylation?

Oxidative phosphorylation has two parts:

a. Electron Transport Chain (ETC) and chemiosmosis: is a collection of proteins bound

to the inner mitochondrial membrane and organic molecules, which electrons pass
through in a series of redox reactions, and release energy.
 b. Chemiosmosis: is a biological process wherein ions (usually protons, H+) are moved
to the other side of the membrane resulting in the generation of an electrochemical
gradient that can be used to drive ATP synthesis.

What coenzymes are involved in biological oxidation and reduction?

Coenzymes are organic compounds required by many enzymes for catalytic activity. They are
often vitamins, or derivatives of vitamins. At times they act as catalysts in the absence of
enzymes, but not so effectively as in conjunction with an enzyme.

Major coenzymes include redox coenzymes: NAD+ (oxidized nicotinamide adenine

dinucleotide), NADH (reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide), NADP+ (oxidized
nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate) and NADPH (reduced nicotinamide adenine
dinucleotide phosphate); energy coenzymes: ATP (adenosine triphosphate), ADP (Adeninosine
diphosphate).

The most common coenzymes are nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) and flavin adenine
dinucleotide (FAD). NAD can be reduced with electrons and a proton to become NADH, while
FAD can take on two protons and four electrons to become FADH2.

What are the types of coenzymes?

Coenzymes are further divided into two types. The first is called a "prosthetic group", which
consists of a coenzyme that is tightly (or even covalently) and permanently bound to a protein.
The second type of coenzymes are called "co-substrates", and are transiently bound to the protein

What are the inhibitors of oxidative phosphorylation electron transport chain?

The most important known inhibitors of the oxidative phosphorylation/electron transport chain
(ETC) are Amytal, Rotenone, Antimycin A, CO, Sodium Azide, and Cyanides.

As an inhibitor of oxidative phosphorylation, antimycin A can inhibit succinate-cytochrome c

reductase in the electron transfer chain to block NADH oxidation and ATP synthesis.

What are the enzyme inhibitors?

1. Competitive inhibition
 2. Non-competitive inhibition
3. Uncompetitive inhibition
4. Mixed inhibition

Which enzyme is inhibited by phosphorylation?

The kinase activity is inhibited by phosphorylation and the phosphatase activity is stimulated by
phosphorylation

Which inhibitor of oxidative phosphorylation binds ATP synthase?

The ATPase Inhibitory Factor 1 (IF1) is the physiological inhibitor of the mitochondrial ATP
synthase

What are inhibitors and uncouplers of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation?

Inhibitors block oxidation and reduce both ATP generation and oxygen consumption; this is in
contrast to uncouplers, which disrupt the mitochondrial membrane and reduce ATP production
but increase oxygen consumption.

What are the inhibitors of active transport?

Cyanide and azide are the two metabolic inhibitors that stop active transport