Question

When heart muscles cells are deprived of oxygen, the heart still pumps. what must the heart cells be able to do? transform lactate back to pyruvate remove oxygen from lactate remove lactate from the blood derive sufficient energy from fermentation continue aerobic metabolism when skeletal muscle cannot?

Answer 1

Heart muscle cells switch to anaerobic respiration, producing lactic acid and ATP during oxygen deprivation. This enables them to continue pumping, albeit less efficiently, until oxygen is again available for aerobic metabolism.

Step-by-step explanation:

When heart muscle cells are deprived of oxygen, they must switch to a different method to produce the energy required to continue pumping. This method is known as anaerobic respiration or fermentation, in which cells can derive sufficient energy by converting pyruvate into lactic acid. This conversion is crucial because it allows the recycling of the enzyme NAD+ from NADH, enabling glycolysis to continue and produce ATP, even though this process is less efficient and sustainable compared to aerobic metabolism. The lactic acid generated is then transported to the liver, where it is processed via the Cori Cycle into pyruvate or glucose when oxygen is available.

Answer 2

The heart cells must be able to continue aerobic metabolism when skeletal muscle cannot. Aerobic metabolism is a part of cellular respiration and involves body cells making energy through glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and the electron transport/oxidative. It is done in the heart at a rate below 85% of maximum heart rate and does not use vigorous muscle contraction. fatty acids , ketone bodies and carbohydrates are the primary substrates of the heart metabolized to generate ATP. The metabolic demands of the heart are the largest than any other organ in the body, and normal cardiac metabolism is required to fuel contractile function and viability.