BIOL 121 Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Keto Acid, Citric Acid Cycle, Oxidative Deamination
Document Summary
Body needs atp, you can get it from fat, carbs or a store of glycogen, protein. Protein is made from amino acids and breaks them down too. If we eat protein we have to digest it and break down into the bloodstream. If you don"t have any other source of atp you can break down proteins for energy. Must remove amino group, called oxidative deamination, left with a keto acid. Ammonia is highly toxic and if left in the body it"s very bad. In the livery, take ammonia and make urea. Urea is toxic but less toxic than ammonia. Keto acid is recognized by active sites on some enzymes in cellular respiration, like pyruvate or sometimes it"ll go to the krebs cycle. This is because of enzymes, how we control the chemical reactions. Binding sites need specificity, which is why certain keto acids go to certain places.
