What enzymes are involved in respiration of germinating beans?
There is nothing mysterious about respiration in germinating beans rather than any respiration anywhere else in the plant or animal kingdom – such as respiration in human muscle cells! If you research the process of respiration in your text book, you will find the enzymes listed there. Look for details of “glycolysis”, “Krebs cycle” and the “Oxidative phosphorylation” chain. However, each of these parts of the process of respiration have other names they are also known by. One unusual feature is that the beans can still germinate even when they are in anaerobic conditions (oxygen not available) – such as in waterlogged conditions. In this situation, the beans will not be able to use Krebs cycle or the Oxidative phosphorylation chain, but will produce ethanol instead of lactic acid at the end of glycolysis by anaerobic respiration (in the same way as yeast carries out anaerobic fermentation).
