Question

In the 1930s, DNP was introduced as a diet drug until it was banned from human use because of adverse side effects when high concentrations of the drug were used. These included rapid breathing, fever, and even death. Propose an explanation for the side effects based on the effect DNP has on the proton gradient.

Fill in the blank with word in answer bank
The increased respiration likely arises from an elevated demand for ______ to drive electron transport to address the _____ eficiency of _____ synthesis.
Fever would result from the ____ production of heat as protons ____ move across the membrane. Death is likely due to insufficient ____ being produced to keep cells alive.
Answer bank:
citrate
NAD+
O2
ATP
increased
passively
glucose
actively
reduced

Answer 1

DNP disrupts the proton gradient required for ATP synthesis, leading to increased oxygen consumption and heat production. This can cause fever and, at high doses, death due to ATP deficiency.

Step-by-step explanation:

The increased respiration likely arises from an elevated demand for O2 to drive electron transport to address the reduced efficiency of ATP synthesis. Fever would result from the increased production of heat as protons passively move across the membrane. Death is likely due to insufficient ATP being produced to keep cells alive.

Dinitrophenol (DNP) is an uncoupling agent which was introduced as a diet drug that makes the inner mitochondrial membrane leaky to protons, leading to a dysfunctional proton gradient that is necessary for ATP synthesis. The body responds to this by escalating its metabolic processes to try to restore ATP levels, requiring more oxygen (O2) for the electron transport chain and generating more heat as a byproduct. Ultimately, the inability to produce enough ATP can result in organ failure and death.