The newspaper headline reads, \"A newborn infant miraculously survives a cold ni

Question

The newspaper headline reads, "A newborn infant miraculously survives a cold night in a dumpster!" older infants frequently can't survive the cold. how is this possible? in addition to lots of white fat cells, newborn mammal's also have brown fat cells in their chest and neck.brown fat cells are thermogenic (thermo=heat, genic= generating). unlike white fat cells, brown fat cells are rich in mitochondria. you are interested in understanding the mechanism of brown fat thermogenesis. you decide to investigate the proteins in brown and white fat mitochondria. using 2-D electrophoresis and mass spectrometry,

you identify a single difference, brown fat cells have a protein that is absent from white fat cells.

question:
propose a model for how this protein could allow brown fat mitochondria to be thermogenic. be specific and use a drawing to illustrate your explanation and show the precise location of this protein.

Explanation / Answer

The protein present in the mitochondria of brown fat functions like an uncoupler, which actually dissipates the proton gradient and lessens the ATP production, but part of the energy used to increase the heat.

This function is similar to uncoupler agents like 2,4-Dinitrophenol (2,4-DNP), and Carbonyl cyanide p-[trifluoromethoxy]-phenyl-hydrazone (FCCP). 2,4-DNP acts as a proton ionophore, that means it binds protons on one side of a membrane, and transports them on the other side; thus, impeding the proton gradient.

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