Question

A couple is concerned because their young boy has never had much energy. He is brought to a doctor for help, and she decides to conduct several diagnostic tests. She discovers that the boy's mitochondria can use only fatty acids and amino acids for cellular respiration, and his cells produce more lactate than normal. Of the following, which is the best explanation of the boy's condition?

Answer 1

Here mitochondria lacks the transport protein which moves the pyruvate across the mitochodrial membrane. So pyruvate will not be available in the mitochondria for kreb's cycle which leads to lack of ATP formation and hence this is the reason for fatigue. Due to the absence of major energy production pathway, the glucose oxidation. there will be lesser energy available causing fatigue.

Since lactate dehydrogenase has pyruvate as its substrate due to accumulation of pyruvate the reaction will shift to the other side leading to the formation of lactate. The reaction is as follows-