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Glycogen Granules
- abundant in liver of well-fed animals but absent after 24 hrs of fasting; or after heavy exercise - granules also contain the enzymes that catalyze its formation and use.
STORAGE: The polymeric nature of glycogen allows energy to be sequestered without the problems of osmotic effects that glucose would cause. - Primarily stored in the MUSCLE and LIVER. - In humans,liver glycogen stores are typically adequate for up to 12 hrs.without the support of gluconeogenesis
Muscle glycogen is a fuel reserved for the production of ATP within that tissue whereas; Liver glycogen is a glucose reserve for the maintenance of blood concentration
Glycogen Synthase transfer the activated glucosyl moiety of UDP glucose to the carbon 4 of a glucosyl residue of the growing chain to form a new glycosidic bond at the hydroxyl group of C1of the activated sugar.
The reducing end of glucose (C1) is always added to the non- reducing end (C4 of a glucosyl residue) of the glycogen chain
- Glycogen synthase cannot form the 1,6- glycosidic linkages - once an amylose chain of at least 11 residues has been formed, a branching enzyme called glucosyl (-4:6) transferase removes a block of about 7 glucosyl residues from a growing chain and transfer it to another chain to produce an 1,6 linkage.
The new branch has to be introduced at least 4 glucosyl residues from the nearest branch points
The creation of the highly branched structure of glycogen requires the concerted efforts of glycogen synthase and branching enzyme.
Glycogen Degradation
Glycogen Glycogen n-1 glycogen phosphorylase
Glucose-1-phosphate
phosphoglucomutase
Glucose-6-phosphate glucose 6-phosphatase Glucose
Debranching Enzyme:
Allows phosphorylase to continue to degrade glycogen Bifunctional enzyme A. 1,4 1,4-glucan transferase activity B. -1,6 glucosidase activity
The cooperative & repetitive action of phosphorylase & debranching enzyme results in complete breakdown of glycogen to glucose -1- PO4 & glucose.
Why not Store it as Free Glucose? Why Waste ATP Making a Polymer Out of Glucose?
- It would cost ATP to pump glucose into a cell against a concentration gradient, and its concentration would have to reach about 400 mm in liver cells to match the glucose reserve provided by the usual liver glycogen content. - Unless balanced by outward movement of some other osmotically active compound accumulation of glucose would cause considerable uptake of water with osmotic lysis of the cell.
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