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Ch.25 Protein and Amino Acid Metabolism
Chapter 25, Problem 25.56

Determine how many ATPs you would make if you consumed a tetrapeptide comprised of leucine, histidine, valine, and lysine. Have each member of your group take one of the four amino acids and determine the number of ATPs their amino acid would make and combine them to get the total.

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1
Step 1: Understand the problem. We need to determine the number of ATPs generated from the metabolism of a tetrapeptide composed of leucine, histidine, valine, and lysine.
Step 2: Break down the tetrapeptide into its constituent amino acids: leucine, histidine, valine, and lysine.
Step 3: For each amino acid, determine the metabolic pathway it enters and calculate the number of ATPs produced. This involves understanding the catabolic pathways for each amino acid.
Step 4: Calculate the ATP yield for each amino acid. This typically involves determining how many molecules of acetyl-CoA, NADH, FADH2, and other intermediates are produced, and then converting these into ATPs using the electron transport chain.
Step 5: Sum the ATPs produced from each amino acid to get the total ATP yield from the tetrapeptide.

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Key Concepts

Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.

Amino Acid Catabolism

Amino acid catabolism refers to the metabolic process by which amino acids are broken down to produce energy. Each amino acid can enter metabolic pathways at different points, contributing to the production of ATP. Understanding how each amino acid is metabolized is crucial for calculating the total ATP yield from a tetrapeptide.
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ATP Yield from Amino Acids

The ATP yield from amino acids varies based on their structure and the metabolic pathways they enter. For example, some amino acids can be converted into glucose or fatty acids, while others enter the citric acid cycle directly. Knowing the specific ATP yield for leucine, histidine, valine, and lysine is essential for accurately determining the total ATP produced from the tetrapeptide.
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Metabolic Pathways

Metabolic pathways are series of chemical reactions occurring within a cell that convert substrates into products, often involving energy transfer. In the context of amino acid metabolism, pathways such as the urea cycle and the citric acid cycle play significant roles. Understanding these pathways helps in determining how each amino acid contributes to ATP production.
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