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Question

Why is ATP called the energy currency of cell?

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Solution

ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is a molecule containing carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus and is found in the cytoplasm of the cell. The cytoplasm is the gel-type filler of the cell where all of the organelles of the cell hang out. This location makes sense because the ATP needs to be near all of the cell parts so that it can supply them with the energy they need for chemical and mechanical reactions.

ATP gets its energy by breaking down food. It is created in the mitochondria, the powerhouse factory organelle, during the process of cellular respiration. The energy is obtained from breaking down food. Animals eat food, and plants absorb the energy from light through the process of photosynthesis.

ATP is the energy currency of the cell because it is the most preferred energy molecule in the cell. Its preference is due to the following factors:

  1. It donates its phosphoryl groups to release energy.
  2. On hydrolysis, it releases a high negative Gibbs free energy which can be used to drive many important biosynthetic reactions in metabolic pathways.
  3. The presence of adenine and ribosyl groups provides additional features for attachment to enzymes so it is able to regulate enzymatic activities.

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