A second mechanism of respiratory control

According to the chemosmotic hypothesis, ATP is synthesized in mitochondria, bacteria and chloroplasts via the proton motive force Delta p, the energy-rich intermediate of electron transport and photosynthetic phosphorylation, The general applicability of the chemosmotic hypothesis, however, was disputed until present, In particular the relationship between the rate of respiration and Delta p in mitochondria was found variable, depending on the experimental conditions. Recently, a new mechanism of respiratory control was found, based on binding of ATP or ADP to subunit IV of cytochrome c oxidase, which is independent of Delta p and could explain many previous results contradicting the chemosmotic hypothesis. (C) 1999 Federation of European Biochemical Societies.