Lecture 1: Biochemistry

In this lesson of course of English for Specialization in Animal Science and Veterinary
Medicine, you will study some of the key terminologies commonly used in Biochemistry. Your
class will be divided into small groups of 8 students and each group will discuss some aspects
relating to the metabolism of nutrients in Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine. At the end of
this lesson, you will practice translating from an English into Vietnamese short paragraph using
the special terms that you have learnt. Additionally, you will be asked to do some exercises about
those terms to make sure that you understand and use them correctly.

❖ Key terminologies
- Absorb: hấp thu
- Active site: vị trí kích hoạt (hoạt hóa)
- Active transport: vận chuyển tích cực (chủ động)
- Amino acid: a-xít amin
- Amphipathic: có tính ưa nước và kỵ nước
- Anabolism: sự đồng hóa
- Animal biochemistry: Sinh hóa học động vật
- Antioxidant: chất chống ô-xi hóa
- ATP synthase: enzyme tổng hợp ATP
- ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate): phân tử mang năng lượng
- Biochemical pathway: con đường sinh hóa, quá trình sinh hóa
- Biological energy: Năng lượng sinh học
- Buffer solution: dung dịch đệm
- Buffering capacity: độ đệm
- Burst of energy: sự gắng sức
- Carnivorous: ăn thịt
- Carrier protein: protein vận chuyển
- Cascade: chuỗi phản ứng
- Catabolism: sự dị hóa
- Catalysis: sự xúc tác
- Cellular respiration: quá trình hô hấp của tế bào
- Chromatography: sắc ký
- Chylomicron: vi thể nhũ trấp
- Coenzyme: đồng diều tố

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 - Cytochrome: sắc tố tế bào
- Cytoplasm: tế bào chất
- Cytoskeleton: bộ khung tế bào
- Cytosol: dịch bào tương
- Deamidation: khử amit
- Deamination: khử amin
- Depolymerization (or depolymerisation): Quá trình khử trùng hợp (là quá trình chuyển
đổi polymer thành monomer hoặc hỗn hợp các monomer)
- Electronegativity: ái lực điện tử (electron)
- Electrophoresis: sự điện di
- End product: sản phẩm cuối cùng
- Endocytosis: sự nhập bào
- Equivalent: tương đương
- Epithelium: biểu mô
- Facilitated diffusion: sự khuếch tán trợ lực (hỗ trợ)
- Fatty acids: các a-xít béo
- Feed: cung cấp / cho ăn / nuôi
- Fermentation: sự lên men
- Hậu tố “-genesis”: sự hình thành / sự tạo thành / sự tổng hợp
=> Gluconeogenesis: sự tân sinh đường (tiến trình tân sinh đường)
=> adipogenesis: quá trình tạo mỡ
- Glycolysis: sự đường phân
- Hydrolysis: sự thuỷ phân
- Hydrophilic: ưa nước
- Hydrophobic: kị nước
- Immunocytochemistry (ICC): kỹ thuật hóa bào miễn dịch (immuno + cyto + chemistry)
- Immunohistochemistry (IHC): kỹ thuật hóa mô miễn dịch (immuno + histo + chemistry)
- Inhibitor: chất ức chế
- Intracellular: nội bào
- Lactation: sự tiết sữa
- Lipid bilayers: màng đôi lipid (màng lipid kép)
- Lipogenesis: sự hình thành chất béo
- Metabolic fuel: nhiên liệu biến dưỡng
- Metabolism: sự trao đổi chất/biến dưỡng

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 - Monomer: chất đơn hợp / chất đơn trùng (một đơn vị cấu tạo nên polymer)
- Molecule: Phân tử
- Mole: phân từ gam (mol)
- Micelle: hạt mixen
- Microbiota: hệ vi sinh vật
=> Microbe = Microorganism: vi sinh vật
- Mitochondrion (Mitochondria): ty thể
- Mitochondrial matrix : Chất nền (chất gian bào) của ty thể
- Nerve impulse propagation: sự (dẫn) truyền thần kinh xung (động) thần kinh
- Organelle: bào quan
- Oxidation: sự ô-xi hoá
- Phosphorylation: sự photphat hóa
- Photosynthesis: sự quang hợp
- Polymer: chất trùng hợp / chất đa trùng (hay còn gọi đại phân tử, là các phân tử được tạo
thành từ các đơn vị nhỏ hơn là các monomer)
- Precursor: tiền chất
- Rumen: dạ cỏ
- Ruminant: thú nhai lại
- Substrate: cơ chất
- Transamination: sự chuyển nhóm amino
- Transporter: chất vận chuyển
- Tricarboxylic acid cycle: chu trình tạo a-xít chứa 3 nhóm carboxy, chu trình a-xít citric,
chu trình Krebs
- VFA (volatile fatty acid): axít béo bay hơi

❖ Reading
Membrane Transport
The most important question about transport of substances across biological membranes
is whether the process requires the cell to expend energy. In passive transport, a substance
moves from a region of higher concentration to one of lower concentration. In other words, the
movement of the substance is in the same direction as a concentration gradient, and the cell
does not expend energy. The process of passive transport can be divided into two categories-
simple diffusion and facilitated diffusion. In active transport, a substance moves from a region
of lower concentration to one of higher concentration (against a concentration gradient), and

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this process requires the cell to expend energy.

Glycolysis
The first stage of glucose metabolism is called glycolysis, and it was the first biochemical
pathway elucidated. Glycolysis is an anaerobic process that, by itself, yields only two molecules
of ATP. The complete aerobic oxidation of glucose to carbon dioxide and water (involving
glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation) yields the energy equivalent of
32 molecules of ATP. During strenuous physical activity, the body aerobically metabolizes
carbohydrates, fats, and proteins for fuel; however, more carbohydrates are used as the
intensity of physical activity increases. In sudden bursts of energy, such as in a 400-meter dash,
the body uses carbohydrates faster than it can process them aerobically. Glucose will be
metabolized via glycolysis, with pyruvate being the end product. This pyruvate will be
converted to lactic acid, which will eventually be exported from muscle to the liver. Thus, the
two ATPs from anaerobic glycolysis will be an additional energy source under these conditions.
Under aerobic conditions, the main purpose of glycolysis is to feed pyruvate into the citric acid
cycle, where further metabolic steps will give riseto considerably more ATP.

Biological Energy
All metabolic processes require energy, which comes from the breaking down of the raw
material inside the cell. This metabolic energy is then used for the synthesis of cell proteins.
The body is a complex organism, and as such, it takes energy to maintain proper functioning.
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the source of energy for use and storage at the cellular level.
The structure of ATP is a nucleoside triphosphate, consisting of a nitrogenous base (adenine), a
ribose sugar, and three serially bonded phosphate groups. ATP is commonly referred to as the
"energy currency" of the cell, as it provides readily releasable energy in the bond between the
second and third phosphate groups. In addition to providing energy, the breakdown of ATP
through hydrolysis serves a broad range of cell functions, including signaling and DNA/RNA
synthesis. ATP synthesis utilizes energy obtained from multiple catabolic mechanisms,
including cellular respiration, beta-oxidation, and ketosis.
The majority of ATP synthesis occurs in cellular respiration within the mitochondrial
matrix: generating approximately thirty-two ATP molecules per molecule of glucose that is
oxidized. ATP is consumed for energy in processes including ion transport, muscle contraction,
nerve impulse propagation, substrate phosphorylation, and chemical synthesis. These processes,
as well as others, create a high demand for ATP. As a result, cells within the human body

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depend upon the hydrolysis of 100 to 150 moles of ATP per day to ensure proper functioning.

Production and absorption of volatile fatty acid in rumen

Volatile fatty acid (VFA), produced by fermentation of organic matter in the rumen by
ruminal microbiota, can have a major effect on production and product composition in
ruminants. The relative proportions in which VFA are produced, are influenced by a number of
factors, including substrate composition, substrate availability and rate of depolymerization,
and microbial species present.
VFAs are produced in large amounts through ruminal fermentation and are of paramount
importance in that they provide greater than 70% of the ruminant's energy supply. Virtually all
of the acetic, proprionic and butyric acids formed in the rumen are absorbed across the ruminal
epithelium, from which they are carried by ruminal veins to the portal vein and hence through
the liver. Continuous removal of VFA from the rumen is important not only for distribution, but
to prevent excessive and damaging drops in pH of rumen fluid.

Metabolism of amino acids

Enzymes for the catabolism and synthesis of amino acids are present in every tissue,
but their levels of expression and activities vary in some species to suit the metabolic needs or
functions of the tissue. Catabolism involves deamination/deamidation reactions with the
resulting carbon skeleton reaminated to form non-essential amino acids or the carbon skeleton
can be channelled into the tricarboxylic acid cycle where it is either oxidized, channelled
towards gluconeogenesis via pyruvate carboxylase, or from pyruvate converted into acetate for
fatty acid synthesis. The excess nitrogen (amino groups) is ultimately transaminated to form
alanine, aspar-tate, glutamine or glutamate for entry into the ornithine cycle for urea or
arginine synthesis. Metabolism in ruminants is orchestrated to conserve glucose, and so it is no
surprise that amino acid carbon contributes 12– 35% to gluconeogenesis. In early lactation
when glucose demands for lactose synthesis are high, and where glucose-precursor
(propionate) supply is low, the channelling of amino acid carbon towards gluconeogenesis is
probably vital. Fish species are unique in this respect because their diets are generally high in
protein and fatty acids, but low in carbohydrates, particularly in carnivorous fish. Fish have
adapted to use amino acids as the main substrates for gluconeogenesis and as the main
oxidative fuel, especially in migratory fish, which may go for long periods without eating.
Apart from dietary glucose and its immediate precursors (e.g. propionate in ruminants), all
new glucose carbon derives from amino acid.

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 ❖ Assignment
- Read the above paragraphs carefully and translate them into Vietnamese using your own
words and the technical terms that you have learnt.