Fumarate reductase is the
enzyme
Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as products ...
that converts
fumarate
Fumaric acid is an organic compound with the formula HO2CCH=CHCO2H. A white solid, fumaric acid occurs widely in nature. It has a fruit-like taste and has been used as a food additive. Its E number is E297.
The salts and esters are known as ...
to
succinate
Succinic acid () is a dicarboxylic acid with the chemical formula (CH2)2(CO2H)2. The name derives from Latin ''succinum'', meaning amber. In living organisms, succinic acid takes the form of an anion, succinate, which has multiple biological ro ...
, and is important in
microbial metabolism
Microbial metabolism is the means by which a microbe obtains the energy and nutrients (e.g. carbon) it needs to live and reproduce. Microbes use many different types of metabolic strategies and species can often be differentiated from each other ...
as a part of
anaerobic respiration
Anaerobic respiration is respiration using electron acceptors other than molecular oxygen (O2). Although oxygen is not the final electron acceptor, the process still uses a respiratory electron transport chain.
In aerobic organisms undergoing r ...
.
Succinate + acceptor <=> fumarate + reduced acceptor
Fumarate reductases can be divided into two classes depending on the electron acceptor:
*
Fumarate reductase (quinol) ()
*:The membrane-bound enzyme covalently linked to flavin cofactors, which is composed of 3 or 4 subunits, transfers electrons from a quinol to fumarate. This class of enzyme is thus involved in the production of ATP by oxidative phosphorylation.
*
Fumarate reductase (NADH) ()
*:The enzyme is monomeric and soluble, and can reduce fumarate independently from the
electron transport chain
An electron transport chain (ETC) is a series of protein complexes and other molecules that transfer electrons from electron donors to electron acceptors via redox reactions (both reduction and oxidation occurring simultaneously) and couples ...
.
Fumarate reductase is absent from all mammalian cells.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fumarate Reductase
Enzymes