Question

Question 10 If the sulfate-reducing bacteria were growing under standard conditions, how many moles of ATP could they synthesize from oxidizing 1 mole of lactate? (Your answer does not have to be an integer.)

Answer 1

A sulfate-reducing bacteria perform anaerobic respiration utilizing sulfate as a terminal electron acceptor reducing it to hydrogen sulfide. This organism breathes sulfate.

The reaction of sulfate and lactate is

2CH₃CHOHCOOH + SO₄^-2$\rightarrow$ 2CH₃COOH + 2HCO₃^-   + H₂O

CH₄ + SO₄^-2  $\rightarrow$ HCO₃^- + HS^- + H₂O

4H₂ + SO₄^-2  $\rightarrow$ HS^- + OH^- + 3H₂O

During the process of Lactic acid fermentation, only 2 molecules of ATP are formed, but these molecules are formed during Glycolysis. As we can see in the reaction of oxidation of lactate, ATP is not formed. So the answer is None.