Gink & Go Dialogues

Setting: Gink and Go are sitting in their dorm room looking at an assignment sheet they received in Biology class. (To complete this assignment you will require a diagram of glycolysis and respiration.)

Gink:		I can’t believe Saupe gave us another stupid assignment sheet.
Go:		Oh come on now, it’s not that bad.
Gink:		It is too! Let’s get this over with so we can do something really worthwhile – like watch CSI on TV. So where do we start?
Go:		First we have to label and color in this sheet that shows the various steps of glucose catabolism.
Gink:		What’s catabolism? Is it like playing baseball with a cat? You know, cat ball – Saupe and I would both enjoy that!
Go:		No, no knucklehead…you know that catabolism refers to breakdown or hydrolysis of biological molecules.
Gink:		Yeah right, and anabolism is the buildup.
Go:		Exactly. Let’s get to work. First, on the diagram we have to label the “cytosol,” “outer mitochondrial membrane,” “inner mitochondrial membrane,” “inter-membrane space,” and “matrix.” (Do it now).
Gink:		Ok. Now what? I hope that we don’t also have to write in where the different processes of glucose breakdown occur.
Go:		I’m afraid so. First we have to write in “glycolysis,” “fermentation,” “Kreb”s cycle,” “citric acid cycle,” “tricarboxylic acid cycle,” “electron transport chain,” and “ATPase/coupling factor” in the areas where they occur. (Do it now).
Gink:		Are we done yet? Hurry because CSI is almost on.
Go:		Oh no, we have lot’s more. Next, we need to color yellow each of the carbon atoms of the glucose molecule shown at the beginning of glycolysis. (Do it now)
Gink:		We might as well color all of the carbons atoms yellow that originally came from this glucose in the remainder of the reactions, too. (Do it now)
Go:		Now you’re talking. And while you’re at it, note during glycolysis, ATP is required during two different reactions. Let’s color or circle these two reactions red (Do it now).
Gink:		ATP is also synthesized in two different reactions during glycolysis. I guess we should color these red, too. (Do it now)
Go:		Great idea. Do you know how many ATP total are produced during glycolysis? And, are they made by a substrate level or oxidative phosphorylation?
Gink:		Do you really expect me to care? ATP is just something I use in the bathroom.
Go:		Oh come on – you know that a total of four ATP are produced by substrate level phosphorylation during glycolysis.
Gink:		Yup. And the two reactions that are involved are catalyzed by a kinase enzyme. Write “kinase” next to these two reactions. (Do it now)
Go:		Saupe said that there was one redox reaction during glycolysis that uses NAD as a coenzyme. Let’s color (or circle) the NAD (Do it now, color your choice).
Gink:		And the enzyme that catalyzes this type of a reaction is called a dehydrogenase. We can write “dehydrogenase” next to this reaction. (Do it now)
Go:		Saupe would be proud. Remember that he said that the word glycolysis literally translated into “sugar splitting?”
Gink:		Should we find the reaction where glucose splits during glycolysis and then put a star ( * ) by it and write “x 2” so were remember that everything from that point on is doubled for every glucose molecule? (Do it now)
Go:		Wow….you amaze me sometimes. But how well do you remember functional groups? We have to circle a molecule in glycolysis with the functional groups - hydroxyl, carbonyl, and carboxyl. (Do it now)
Gink:		Are we done yet? I’m going to miss my show.
Go:		Nope – we are getting to the best part. Just to be sure we understand everything we’d summarize the results of glycolysis. The starting materials of glycolysis are __________, 2 __________, 2 __________, 4 __________.
Gink:		Yeah, yeah….and the end products are 2 __________, 2 __________, 2 __________ and 4 ___________.
Go:		Excellent. And don’t forget that glycolysis occurs under (a. anaerobic; b. aerobic; c. both; or d. neither) conditions in the (a. chloroplast; b. mitochondrion; c. cytosol; d. all of the above) in the cell.
Gink:		And it’s the most ancient biochemical pathway, too, found in virtually all organisms.
Go:		Brilliant. Now let’s follow what happens to the pyruvic acid.
Gink:		The only thing I want to follow is CSI. I’m outta here!