Animation of signalling pathways

The respiratory chain is a continuous reaction system consisting of a series of hydrogen- and electron-transferring reactions arranged in a certain order, in which pairs of hydrogen atoms removed from metabolites are given to oxygen for the production of water, and ATP is generated at the same time. In fact, the role of the respiratory chain represents the most basic function of the mitochondria. Hydrogen transporters and electron transporters in the respiratory chain are carriers that can transfer hydrogen atoms or electrons, and since hydrogen atoms can be regarded as consisting of protons and electrons outside the nucleus, hydrogen transporters are also electron transporters, and hydrogen transporters and electron transporters are essentially enzymes, coenzymes, cofactors, or cofactors.