In muscle cells, fermentation produces _____.
A) Lactic acid
B) Ethanol
C) Acetic acid
D) Carbon dioxide
Answer: A) Lactic acid
Fermentation in muscle cells includes the creation of lactic acid. This is called lactic fermentation, and it happens when there is little oxygen in the body cells that can support regular cellular breathing. And any time there is some exercise or any other activity where mechanical movements that place the muscles under dynamic stress are invokable then they require energy which cannot be exactly provided by the aerobic respiration. Thus, to meet this demand, there is an increased focus on muscle cells to use the process of anaerobic fermentation, to increase the production of ATP as quickly as possible, which does not require oxygen.
Tissue metabolism in a muscle group begins with glycolysis in which glucose is restricted into pyruvate. When oxygen is not available for instance, pyruvate entering into the citric acid cycle it is converted to lactic acid. This is carried out by the enzyme lactate dehydrogenase and the regeneration of NAD+ which is useful in the subsequent procedure in the process of glycolysis. This is somewhat less efficient than aerobic respiration but it permits muscles to contract when in anaerobic activities or when oxygen is scarce.
When muscles become acidic through the accumulation of lactic acid one will experience fatigue or the feeling of tiredness and the burning one experiences when exercising. However, it becomes difficult for the majority of people to realize that an increase in the production of lactic acid is in no way, indeed related to muscle soreness. When oxygen is replenished, the lactic acid in the blood is converted back to pyruvate and the majority of it is used to meet the energy requirements or converted to glucose via the action of the liver in a process known as gluconeogenesis. The transport of metabolic products such as lactic acid out of the muscles and glucose back to the muscles is known as the Cori cycle.
Leave a Reply