20241125 Hemoglobin and Chlorophyll

 HEMOGLOBIN VS. CHLOROPHYLL

Hemoglobin tetramer ribbon CC-by-SA3.0 Zephyris

In nature, one can expect many parallels. Many animals have four feet. There are apes, lions, camels, and tortoises. Are all these related? Not really. Again, nearly all animals have two eyes in their head. Is there significance beyond the fact that this enables stereoscopic vision along an excellent line-of-sight

And so we come to the two substances most closely associated with life processes: the chlorophyll of plant life and the hemoglobin of animal life. Chlorophyll produces the food plants need for survival. Hemoglobin carries nutrients and oxygen essential to animal life. Although animals and plants are different, there are interesting parallels to be seen in the central core of these two substances.

Hemoglobin and Chlorophyll: A Central Metal Atom


chlorophyll possesses a central metallic magnesium atom, symbol Mg. Red hemoglobin likewise possesses a central metallic atom – this time iron, symbol Fe.

In both cases, the metal atoms are encircled by a structure including four nitrogen atoms. Also the metal atoms have valence +


Reflections

Thus hemoglobin and chlorophyll bear a number similarities. This might have been anticipated, since both substances play a key role in the handling of oxygen and carbon dioxide. Primarily animals consume oxygen and release carbon dioxide, whereas primarily plants consume carbon dioxide and release oxygen. Still, the same substances are handled by both organism types.

Chlorophyll Structure

Summary:

Both chlorophyll and chloroplasts involve important structures, but they differ in scale and function. Chlorophyll is a biomolecule, while chloroplasts are organelles. However, chlorophyll molecules have a central metal ion, magnesium (Mg²⁺), which is held in place within a porphyrin ring through a process called chelation. This arrangement stabilizes the ion and is crucial for the molecule's ability to absorb light during photosynthesis. This structural feature is unique to chlorophyll and is not shared with chloroplasts themselves, which are more complex and house many other components.

Chelation Definition - Chelation is a phenomenon or the ability of ions and molecules to form bonds with metal ions. Between a polydentate ligand and a single central atom, two or more different coordinate bonds are formed or present. Let us discuss the terms used in the chelation definition for a better understanding of the definition.

References:

https://www.quirkyscience.com/comparing-hemoglobin-and-chlorophyll/

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorophyll

https://www.vedantu.com/chemistry/chelate

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