Glycolysis
Return to Chemistry 340 Home Page

Major concepts:

1. How is the structure of glucose changed by the reactions in the preparation phase of glycolysis?
2. Which glycolysis reaction is the committed step, and what does "committed step" mean?
3. How is glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate changed during the reaction catalyzed by GAPDH?
How is it changed, overall, during the reactions of the payoff phase of glycolysis?
4. What happens to pyruvate during fermentation? Why?
5. Why are the fermentation products of skeletal muscle cells different from yeast cells?

Core knowledge:

1. What is the overall reaction for glycolysis? What is the overall reaction for the preparation phase? For the payoff phase? What is the net energy yield per glucose from glycolysis?
2. What is the reaction catalyzed by hexokinase, and why is it important?
3. What is the reaction catalyzed by PFK-1, and why is it important? What does PFK-1 mean?
4. What is the reaction catalyzed by GAPDH, and why is it important? What are the steps of this reaction?
5. What is the reaction catalyzed by pyruvate kinase? What is the mechanism for the reaction?
6. What happens to pyruvate in anaerobic yeast cells? What enzymes are required, what is the intermediate, and what is the net energy yield per glucose as a result?
7. What happens to pyruvate in anaerobic skeletal muscle cells? What enzyme is required, and what is the net energy yield per glucose as a result?

Overview:
glucose + 2 ADP + 2 Pi + 2 NAD+ → 2 pyruvate + 2 ATP + 2 NADH + 2 H+ + 2 H2O
occurs in the cytosol in two phases: preparation (reactions 1–5) + pay-off (reactions 6–10)
involves phosphorylated intermediates
     higher energy (more activated), prevents diffusion out of the cell,
      lower ΔG because binding phosphate is favored.

Preparation reactions (5): C6 → 2 C3, costing energy

Hexokinase catalyzes transfer of phosphate from ATP to glucose → glucose-6-P + ADP
requires Mg2+ to stabilize ATP                                                                          ΔG°′ = − 16.7 kJ/mol

Phosphohexose isomerase converts glucose-6-P ↔ fructose-6-P.                     ΔG°′ = 1.7 kJ/mol

   Reaction mechanism = acid-base, with Glu functioning as a base to remove H+ from C2.

Phosphofructokinase (PFK-1)
transfers P from ATP to fructose-6-P → fructose-1,6-bis-P + ADP               ΔG°′ = − 14.2 kJ/mol
requires Mg2+ to stabilize ATP
major regulated enzyme ( committed step of glycolysis)

Aldolase catalyzes
fructose-1,6-bis-P ↔ dihydroxyacetone phosphate + glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate  
ΔG°′ = 23.8 kJ/mol

   Aldolase (a lyase) occur in two classes: type I uses a Schiff base mechanism (acid-base),
     and type II uses a metal ion.

Triose phosphate isomerase converts dihydroxyacetone-phosphate to glyceraldehyde-phosphate, so overall in the preparation phase 1 glucose → 2 glyceraldehyde-phosphates.
"perfect" enzyme                                                                                           ΔG°′ = 7.5 kJ/mol
Uses acid-base catalysis similar to the reaction catalyzed by phosphohexose isomerase.

Preparation phase summary: 1 glucose + 2 ATP → 2 glyceraldehyde-phosphates + 2 ADP

Pay-off reactions (5): 2 C3-phosphates → 2 pyruvates; oxidation + substrate phosphorylation

Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase oxidizes glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate, reduces NAD+, and adds Pi to C1 of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate.
first productive reaction of glycolysis                                                                  ΔG°′ = 6.3 kJ/mol

   Reaction mechanism involves covalent catalysis, requires Cys and His in the active site.

 

Phosphoglycerate kinase transfers the P from C1 of 1,3-BPG to ADP:
1,3-bis-phosphoglycerate + ADP ↔ 3-phosphoglycerate + ATP
first ATP production = substrate level phosphorylation                              ΔG°′ = − 18.5 kJ/mol
This reaction pulls the previous reaction.

Phosphoglycerate mutase converts 3-phosphoglycerate ↔ 2-phosphoglycerate
                                ΔG°′ = 4.4 kJ/mol
This involves transfer of P from P–His–enzyme → 2,3-BPG intermediate.
This occasionally diffuses away from the enzyme, which must then be regenerated.
2,3-BPG is important in red blood cells as a modulator of Hb conformation.

Enolase removes H2O from 2-phosphoglycerate ↔ phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP)
                                 ΔG°′ = 7.5 kJ/mol
converts the phosphate into a high energy phosphate.

Pyruvate kinase transfers phosphoryl from PEP to ADP → pyruvate + ATP.
ΔG°′ = − 31.4 kJ/mol
Requires K+ and Mg2+ (or Mn2+) to stabilize negative charges during transfer.
Two-step reaction: transfer phosphoryl, then convert enol → keto (more stable)
Second substrate level phosphorylation
Irreversible , making the pathway irreversible; a regulated step

Pay-off phase summary: 2 glyceraldehyde-phosphates + 2 NAD+ + 2 Pi + 4 ADP →
              2 pyruvates + 2 NADH + 2 H+ + 4 ATP

Overall energy yield from glycolysis per glucose: 2 ATP + 2 NADH + 2 pyruvate

Multi-enzyme complexes channel pathway intermediates, increasing pathway efficiency.

Other sugars and glycolysis
Fructose: phosphorylation by hexokinase → fructose-6-phosphate
         phosphorylation by fructokinase → fructose-1-phosphate
Galactose (from lactose) → → → glucose-1-phosphate → glucose-6-phosphate
Mannose: hexokinase → mannose-6-phosphate → fructose-6-phosphate
         isomerization by phosphomannose isomerase

Pyruvate and NADH
aerobically NADH is recycled using electron transport; requires O2 as e acceptor
      pyruvate → acetyl-CoA → CO2 (citric acid cycle) + more energy (30-32 ATP)
anaerobically NADH must be recycled by another method, usually involving pyruvate

Anaerobic catabolism of pyruvate (pyruvate is the e acceptor)
1. lactic acid fermentation: pyruvate + NADH + H+ ↔ lactate + NAD+
             a. catalyzed by lactate dehydrogenase      ΔG°′ = − 25.1 kJ/mol
             b. net yield from glycolysis = 2 ATP only; emergency demand for ATP and by RBC
            c. recovery = converting lactate → pyruvate → glucose, via gluconeogenesis (liver)
                        Cori cycle: glucose → lactate in skeletal muscle, lactate g glucose in liver (+ NADH)
2. alcohol fermentation: pyruvate + NADH + H+ → ethanol + CO2 + NAD+
            a. pyruvate decarboxylase, requires thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP) coenzyme
             b. alcohol dehydrogenase, recycles NADH by reducing acetaldehyde to alcohol.
         ΔG°′ = - 23.7 kJ/mol

 

top of page