A second mechanism of respiratory control

AbstractAccording to the chemosmotic hypothesis, ATP is synthesized in mitochondria, bacteria and chloroplasts via the proton motive force Δp, the energy-rich intermediate of electron transport and photosynthetic phosphorylation. The general applicability of the chemosmotic hypothesis, however, was disputed until present. In particular the relationship between the rate of respiration and Δp in mitochondria was found variable, depending on the experimental conditions. Recently, a new mechanism of respiratory control was found, based on binding of ATP or ADP to subunit IV of cytochrome c oxidase, which is independent of Δp and could explain many previous results contradicting the chemosmotic hypothesis