Fluroacetate is a potent inhibitor of a citric acid cycle en…

Fluroacetate is a potent inhibitor of a citric acid cycle enzyme. Fluroacetate has been used as a poison by ranchers in the West to control coyote populations.  In a mammalian cell, fluroacetate is enzymatically converted to the following molecule: What enzyme would be inhibited by this molecule when used as a substrate?

In an experimental system for the study of the electron tran…

In an experimental system for the study of the electron transport chain, electrons can be supplied by adding ascorbate as an artificial electron donor. When using ascorbate in these experiments it is necessary to include an electron acceptor such as TMPD (an intermediate electron acceptor) that accepts electrons from ascorbate and can then donate electrons to cytochrome c. When using this experimental system it would be possible to transfer electrons directly to which complex?

Crib death of infants when fasting (i.e., when sleeping and…

Crib death of infants when fasting (i.e., when sleeping and not eating – therefore a low blood glucose condition) is also known as sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). SIDS was often blamed on lack of proper care by the parents of the child. It is now known that a significant number of SIDS cases are caused by a genetic defect in the gene that codes for fatty acyl-CoA dehydrogenase, the enzyme that catalyzes the first step in fatty acid β-oxidation (see question 34 for this reaction). If this enzyme is defective, energy from fatty acids is not available and, in addition, gluconeogenesis is inhibited resulting in severe and life-threatening hypoglycemia (low blood glucose). Why the hypoglycemia?