110k views
1 vote
How many acetyl-coa molecules are produced in the complete beta-oxidation of one 22-carbon fatty acid molecule?

User Manu Obre
by
8.6k points

1 Answer

5 votes

Final answer:

Upon the complete beta-oxidation of a 22-carbon fatty acid molecule, 11 molecules of acetyl-CoA are produced.

Step-by-step explanation:

In the complete beta-oxidation of one 22-carbon fatty acid molecule, a certain number of acetyl-CoA molecules are produced. The beta-oxidation cycle is repeated as (n/2) - 1 times, where n is the number of carbon atoms in the fatty acid. In the final cycle, two acetyl-CoA molecules are produced. For a 22-carbon fatty acid, the number of acetyl-CoA molecules produced is calculated by first determining the number of beta-oxidation cycles, which would be (22/2) - 1 = 11 - 1 = 10 cycles. Since each cycle produces one acetyl-CoA and the last cycle produces an additional acetyl-CoA (for a total of two), the total number of acetyl-CoA produced would be 10 + 1 = 11 molecules.

User AweSIM
by
8.0k points