Question

Carbon monoxide (CO) is an odorless, colorless, and tasteless gas that is toxic in high enough concentrations. It can be a by-product of burning fossil fuels. CO binds irreversibly to the protein (hemoglobin) that transports O2 throughout your bloodstream. As you are exposed to high amounts of CO over a period of time your available hemoglobin becomes unable to bind to O2 because it is bound to CO. In your own words, explain what would happen to cellular respiration and what overall effect this would have on the organism.

Answer 1

Answer:

Carbon monoxide has much more affinity for the hemoglobin than the affinity of the oxygen to the hemoglobin almost 300 times more, which allows the Hb to bind with carbon monoxide irreversibly. Due to this, the small quantity of CO can also reduce the ability of oxygen transport of the hemoglobin.

Longer exposure of CO to the cHb will lead to reducing oxygen release by the Hb that is bound to oxygen in this T state which causes less oxygen availability. In aerobic oxidation mechanisms like oxidative phosphorylation will eventually stop. It will be shifted to anaerobic cellular respiration. The net production of ATP drastically reduced due to anaerobic glycolysis. Cells will eventually start to die causing the death of an organism.