The evolution of metabolic cycles
Abstract
The function of the citric acid cycle is to convert efficiently the energy released during the combustion of acetate into the energy stored in the pyrophosphate bonds of ATP. The cycle is almost twice as efficient as feasible alternatives of acetate combustion, such as a direct pathway via glycollate, glyoxylate, formaldehyde and formate. The reason is that the first stage of acetate degradation cannot be a dehydrogenation; it must be an oxygenation by molecular oxygen. Thus the cycle must have evolved because in a competitive environment the chances of survival are greatest if resources are optimal. Analogous considerations apply to the evolution of other metabolic cycles.
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These findings strengthen the notion that the rTCA cycle may represent both a vestige of prebiotic metabolism and an evolutionary precursor for the oxidative TCA cycle.
“These findings strengthen the notion that the rTCA cycle may represent both a vestige of prebiotic metabolism and an evolutionary precursor for the oxidative TCA cycle (18, 27).”
From Regulation and function of the mammalian tricarboxylic acid cycle (2023) · cites this paper as [27]
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Regulation and function of the mammalian tricarboxylic acid cycle
Arnold, P. K., & Finley, L. W. S. (2023) · Journal of Biological Chemistry · doi:10.1016/j.jbc.2022.102838 · Cited by 535 · see citing works
“These findings strengthen the notion that the rTCA cycle may represent both a vestige of prebiotic metabolism and an evolutionary precursor for the oxidative TCA cycle (18, 27).”
BackgroundTimmons, J. A., Knudsen, S., Rankinen, T., Koch, L. G., Sarzynski, M., Jensen, T., Keller, P., Scheele, C., Vollaard, N. B. J., Nielsen, S., et al. (2010) · Journal of Applied Physiology · doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.01295.2009 · Cited by 358 · see citing works
Metabolic inflammation in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction
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- Authors
- Baldwin, J. E., & Krebs, H.
- Affiliations
- University of Oxford (GB)
- ORCID
- Baldwin, Jack E.
- Venue
- Nature
- Published
- 1981-06
- Volume
- 291
- Issue
- 5814
- Pages
- 381-382
- ISSN
- 0028-0836 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-4687
- OpenAlex
- W2021664757
- Cited by
- 165
- References
- 5
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 8 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 5
- FWCI
- 0.53
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Nature (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Microbial metabolism and enzyme function
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Origins and Evolution of Life
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Microbial Metabolic Engineering and Bioproduction
- Keywords
- TCA cycle, acetate degradation, glycolate pathway, glyoxylate pathway, dehydrogenation, metabolic efficiency
- MeSH terms
- Adenosine Triphosphate, Animals, Citric Acid Cycle, Energy Metabolism, Biological Evolution, Pentosephosphates
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