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Biology vocabulary · Molecules of Life and Metabolism

ATP

Meaning in biology, with examples

/ˌeɪ tiː ˈpiː/abbreviationCore term

In biology, ATP means: Short for adenosine triphosphate, the molecule that cells use to store and transfer energy. Breaking off one of its phosphate groups releases energy for cell work.

In Turkish: ATP, adenozin trifosfat

How it is used

Often called the energy currency of the cell. ATP is made in cellular respiration and photosynthesis and used for muscle contraction, active transport and building molecules. When it loses a phosphate, it becomes ADP. Said letter by letter: A-T-P.

Example sentences

  1. Active transport uses ATP to move ions against their concentration gradient.

  2. One glucose molecule yields around 30 ATP in aerobic respiration.

Common collocations

  • ATP production
  • ATP synthesis
  • ATP synthase
  • generate ATP
  • cellular respirationThe process by which cells break down glucose and other food molecules to release energy and store it as ATP. When oxygen is used, carbon dioxide and water are produced.
  • mitochondrionAn organelle that releases energy from food molecules and stores it as ATP through aerobic respiration. It has two membranes and its own small set of DNA.
  • metabolismAll the chemical reactions that take place in a living thing to keep it alive, including breaking down food for energy and building new molecules.
  • photosynthesisThe process in which plants, algae and some bacteria use light energy to make glucose from carbon dioxide and water, releasing oxygen as a by-product.
  • enzymeA molecule, usually a protein, that speeds up a chemical reaction in a living thing without being used up. Each enzyme acts on a specific substrate at its active site.

More terms: Molecules of Life and Metabolism

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