Animal cell activation process for energy synthesis
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Cell Energy and Cell Functions
Cells manage a wide range of functions in their tiny package — growing, moving, housekeeping, and so on — and most of those functions require energy. But how do cells get this energy in the first place? And how do they use it in the most efficient manner possible?
Where Do Cells Obtain Their Energy?
Figure 1: For photosynthetic cells, the main energy source is the sun.
For photosynthetic cells, the main energy source is the sun.
© 2010 Nature Education All rights reserved.
Cells, like humans, cannot generate energy without locating a source in their environment. However, whereas humans search for substances like fossil fuels to power their homes and businesses, cells seek their energy in the form of food molecules or sunlight. In fact, the Sun is the ultimate source of energy for almost all cells, because photosynthetic prokaryotes, algae, and plant cells harness solar energy and use it to make the complex organic food molecules that other cells rely on for the energy required to sustain growth, metabolism, and reproduction (Figure 1).
Cellular nutrients come in many forms, including sugars and fats. In order to provide a cell with energy, these molecules have to pass across the cell membrane, which functions as a barrier — but not an impassable one. Like the exterior walls of a house, the plasma membrane is semi-permeable. In much the same way that doors and windows allow necessities to enter the house, various proteins that span the cell membrane permit specific molecules into the cell, although they may require some energy input to accomplish this task (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Cells can incorporate nutrients by phagocytosis.
This amoeba, a single-celled organism, acquires energy by engulfing nutrients in the form of a yeast cell (red). Through a process called phagocytosis, the amoeba encloses the yeast cell with its membrane and draws it inside. Specialized plasma membrane proteins in the amoeba (in green) are involved in this act of phagocytosis, and they are later recycled back into the amoeba after the nutrients are engulfed.
© 2006 The Company of Biologists All rights reserved.
Figure Detail
How Do Cells Turn Nutrients into Usable Energy?
Complex organic food molecules such as sugars, fats, and proteins are rich sources of energy for cells because much of the energy used to form these molecules is literally stored within the chemical bonds that hold them together. Scientists can measure the amount of energy stored in foods using a device called a bomb calorimeter. With this technique, food is placed inside the calorimeter and heated until it burns. The excess heat released by the reaction is directly proportional to the amount of energy contained in the food.
Figure 3: The release of energy from sugar
Compare the stepwise oxidation (left) with the direct burning of sugar (right). Through a series if small steps, free energy is released from sugar and stored in carrier molecules in the cell (ATP and NADH, not shown). On the right, the direct burning of sugar requires a larger activation energy. In this reaction, the same total free energy is released as in stepwise oxidation, but none is stored in carrier molecules, so most of it will be lost as heat (free energy). This direct burning is therefore very inefficient, as it does not harness energy for later
Cells manage a wide range of functions in their tiny package — growing, moving, housekeeping, and so on — and most of those functions require energy. But how do cells get this energy in the first place? And how do they use it in the most efficient manner possible?
Where Do Cells Obtain Their Energy?
Figure 1: For photosynthetic cells, the main energy source is the sun.
For photosynthetic cells, the main energy source is the sun.
© 2010 Nature Education All rights reserved.
Cells, like humans, cannot generate energy without locating a source in their environment. However, whereas humans search for substances like fossil fuels to power their homes and businesses, cells seek their energy in the form of food molecules or sunlight. In fact, the Sun is the ultimate source of energy for almost all cells, because photosynthetic prokaryotes, algae, and plant cells harness solar energy and use it to make the complex organic food molecules that other cells rely on for the energy required to sustain growth, metabolism, and reproduction (Figure 1).
Cellular nutrients come in many forms, including sugars and fats. In order to provide a cell with energy, these molecules have to pass across the cell membrane, which functions as a barrier — but not an impassable one. Like the exterior walls of a house, the plasma membrane is semi-permeable. In much the same way that doors and windows allow necessities to enter the house, various proteins that span the cell membrane permit specific molecules into the cell, although they may require some energy input to accomplish this task (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Cells can incorporate nutrients by phagocytosis.
This amoeba, a single-celled organism, acquires energy by engulfing nutrients in the form of a yeast cell (red). Through a process called phagocytosis, the amoeba encloses the yeast cell with its membrane and draws it inside. Specialized plasma membrane proteins in the amoeba (in green) are involved in this act of phagocytosis, and they are later recycled back into the amoeba after the nutrients are engulfed.
© 2006 The Company of Biologists All rights reserved.
Figure Detail
How Do Cells Turn Nutrients into Usable Energy?
Complex organic food molecules such as sugars, fats, and proteins are rich sources of energy for cells because much of the energy used to form these molecules is literally stored within the chemical bonds that hold them together. Scientists can measure the amount of energy stored in foods using a device called a bomb calorimeter. With this technique, food is placed inside the calorimeter and heated until it burns. The excess heat released by the reaction is directly proportional to the amount of energy contained in the food.
Figure 3: The release of energy from sugar
Compare the stepwise oxidation (left) with the direct burning of sugar (right). Through a series if small steps, free energy is released from sugar and stored in carrier molecules in the cell (ATP and NADH, not shown). On the right, the direct burning of sugar requires a larger activation energy. In this reaction, the same total free energy is released as in stepwise oxidation, but none is stored in carrier molecules, so most of it will be lost as heat (free energy). This direct burning is therefore very inefficient, as it does not harness energy for later
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