Biochemistry at The Biology Project

The Biology Project Home > Biochemistry > Regulation of Carbohydrate Metabolism > Problem Sets The Biology Project: Biochemistry The Biology Project: Biochemistry

Regulation of Carbohydrate Metabolism Problem Set

Question 6: Epinephrine Action to Mobilize Glycogen

Correct!

To which receptor does epinephrine bind in order to stimulate phosphorylation of glycogen synthase, glycogen phosphorylase, PFK-2/FBPase-2 bifunctional enzyme, and pyruvate kinase?

A. alpha-1
B. alpha-2
C. glucagon
D. beta
One way to arrive at the correct answer is to recall that the actions of epinephrine resemble that of glucagon in opposing insulin. However, since epinephrine is a catecholamine, its receptor must be distinct from the glucagon receptor, which binds a polypeptide ligand. Otherwise, the similarity with glucagon holds, in that both agents exert their effects on the liver (or muscle) cell by raising cAMP to activate protein kinase A. For the purposes of the Biochemistry course (but not necessarily Physiology!), do not worry about the distinction between beta-1 and beta-2. But there is more to the epinephrine story...

Problem 6 | Tutorial | Problem 7

Vocabulary

The Biology Project Home > Biochemistry > Regulation of Carbohydrate Metabolism > Problem Set
The Biology Project
The University of Arizona
March 16, 2001
Revised: August, 2004
Contact the Development Team

http://biology.arizona.edu
All contents copyright © 2000-2004. All rights reserved.