From the molecules of life, to the

simpler organisms

Part
II

Paula B. Matheus Carnevali

 Nutrient requirements

Over 95 % of cell dry weight is made up of:

• Carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulfur,
phosphorous, potassium, calcium, magnesium,
and iron.

Electron movement (electron transport chains,

oxidation-reduction reactions) provide energy
for use in work, and allow molecules’ reduction
during biosynthesis
 Metabolisms

Carbon source Energy source Electron source

Phototrophs
Autotrophs Light
CO2 sole or
Principal
biosynthetic Chemotrophs Lithotrophs
Carbon source Oxidation of organic Reduced inorganic
Or inorganic molecules
Heterotrophs compounds
Reduced, preformed,
Organic molecules Organotrophs
From other Organic molecules
organisms
 Major nutritional types

Major nutritional types of microorganisms

From Prescott et al,, 2005

 What is the energy needed for?

• Chemical work: involves the synthesis of

complex biological molecules from much
simpler precursors,
• Transport work: requires energy input in
order to take up nutrients, eliminate wastes,
and maintain ion balance,
• Mechanical work: energy is required to
change physical location of organisms, cells
and structures within the cells.
 Light energy

Phototrophs (photosynthesis), Chemolitotrophs

Chemical energy

Carbon source for Chemoheterotrophs

Photolithoautotrophs and Chemolithoautotrophs

transform CO2 into biological molecules
 Free-energy and Equilibrium

ΔG º’ = - 2.303 RT.logKeq

R is the gas constant

T is the absolute temperature

•When ΔG º’ is negative, K is greater than 1 and the

reaction goes to completion as written = exergonic reaction
•When ΔG º’ is positive, K is less than 1 and the reaction is
not favorable (little product will be formed at the equilibrium)
= endergonic reaction
Cells energy currency: ATP
 Oxidation-reduction reactions

• Electron donor/Electron acceptor

• Equilibrium constant is the Standard

reduction potential (Eo) = measure of the
tendency of a donor to lose electrons

• Redox couples with more negative

reduction potentials will donate electrons
to couples with more positive potentials
and greater affinity for electrons.
 When electrons
move from a donor
to an acceptor
with a more
positive redox
potential, free
energy is released

Electron movement and reduction potentials.

From Prescott et al., 2005
NAD: nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide

Electron movement requires the participation of carriers

to transport electrons between different locations
Photosynthesis

Photosynthetic organisms
capture light energy and use it
to move electrons from water
(and other electron donors) to
electron acceptors, such as
NADP+ , that have more
negative reduction potentials.
These electrons can flow back
to more positive acceptors and
provide energy for ATP
production.
 Enzymes

Enzymes accelerate reactions by

lowering the activation energy
 An overview of metabolism

Metabolism refers to the sum of the biochemical reactions required

for energy generation and the use of energy to synthesize cell material
from small molecules in the environment
 Patterns of energy release

Fermentation the energy substrate is oxidized and degraded without the

participation of an exogenous or externally derived electron acceptor

Energy-yielding metabolism can make use of exogenous or externally

derived electron acceptors
• Metabolic pathways consist of enzyme-
catalyzed reactions arranged so that the
product of one reaction serves as a substrate
for the next.

• The uniqueness of microbial metabolism lies in

the diversity of the sources from which it
generates ATP and NADPH.

• Carbohydrates and other nutrients serve two

functions in the metabolism of heterotrophic
organisms: they are oxidized to release energy,
and supply carbon for the synthesis of new cell
constituents.
Glycolysis

Glucose + 2ADP
+ 2Pi + 2NAD+ →
2 Pyruvate +
2ATP + 2 NADH
+ 2H+
Fermentation

NADH produced in the

glycolytic pathway must be
oxidized back to NAD+

Pyruvate or one of its

derivatives can be used as an
electron and hydrogen
acceptor for the reoxidation
of NADH

This may lead to the

production of more ATP
 A lot of
energy is
released
when
pyruvate is
degraded
aerobically
to CO2. The
substrate of
the Krebs
cycle is
acetyl-CoA
Electron transport chain

The electron
transport chain is
composed of a series
of electron carriers
that operate together
to transfer electrons
form donors, like
NADH and FADH2, to
acceptors, such as O2.
Electron transport at
these points may
generate proton and
electrical gradients.
 Oxidative phosphorylation
the process by which the energy from electron
transport is used to make ATP

As many as three
ATP molecules may
be synthesized from
ADP and Pi when a
pair of electrons
pass from NADH to
an atom of O2
 Anaerobic respiration
Not as efficient as aerobic respiration

•NO3- + 2e- + 2H+ → NO2- + H2O

(Dissimilatory nitrate reduction)

•2NO3- + 10e- + 12H+→ N2 + 6H2O

(Denitrification)

•SO42- + 8e- + 8H+ → S2- + 4H2O

 Bacterial Growth

Log number of viable cells

Time

Microbial growth curve in a closed system. The growth of organisms

reproducing by binary fission can be plotted as the logarithm of the
number of viable cells versus the incubation time
The influence of environmental
factors on growth
Microbial responses to environmental factors

From Prescott et al,, 2005