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Certain turtle species have been found to be capable of tolerating high levels of lactic acid without experiencing the effects of lactic acidosis. Painted turtles hibernate buried in mud or underwater and do not resurface for the entire winter. As a result, they rely on lactic acid fermentation to provide the majority of their energy needs. [23]
Lactic acid fermentation is a metabolic process by which glucose or other six-carbon sugars (also, disaccharides of six-carbon sugars, e.g. sucrose or lactose) are converted into cellular energy and the metabolite lactate, which is lactic acid in solution.
Despite the bactericidal effects of ethanol, acidifying effects of fermentation, and low oxygen conditions of industrial alcohol production, bacteria that undergo lactic acid fermentation can contaminate such facilities because lactic acid has a low pKa of 3.86 to avoid decoupling the pH membrane gradient that supports regulated transport. [7]
Pyruvate is the terminal electron acceptor in lactic acid fermentation. When sufficient oxygen is not present in the muscle cells for further oxidation of pyruvate and NADH produced in glycolysis, NAD+ is regenerated from NADH by reduction of pyruvate to lactate. [4] Lactate is converted to pyruvate by the enzyme lactate dehydrogenase. [3]
Generally, lactic acid fermentation occurs only when aerobic cells are lacking oxygen. However, some aerobic mammalian cells will preferentially use lactic acid fermentation over aerobic respiration. This phenomenon is called the Warburg effect and is found primarily in cancer cells. [9]
Characteristic features include developmental delay and a buildup of lactic acid in the blood (lactic acidosis). Increased acidity in the blood can lead to vomiting, abdominal pain, extreme tiredness , muscle weakness, and difficulty breathing. In some cases, episodes of lactic acidosis are triggered by an illness or periods without food.
In the absence of oxygen, fermentation prevents the buildup of NADH in the cytoplasm and provides NAD + for glycolysis. This waste product varies depending on the organism. In skeletal muscles, the waste product is lactic acid. This type of fermentation is called lactic acid fermentation. In strenuous exercise, when energy demands exceed energy ...
Lactic acid produced by fermentation of milk is often racemic, although certain species of bacteria produce solely D-lactic acid. [6] On the other hand, lactic acid produced by fermentation in animal muscles has the (L) enantiomer and is sometimes called "sarcolactic" acid, from the Greek sarx, meaning "flesh".