biology

NDUFA10

NDUFA10 is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand NDUFA10 rather than just read about it. In short: NADH dehydrogenase [ubiquinone] 1 alpha subcomplex subunit 10 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the NDUFA10 gene. The NDUFA10 protein is a subunit of NADH dehydrogenase (ubiquinone), which is located in the mitochondrial inner membrane and is the largest of the five complexes of the electron transport chain.

Key takeaways

NDUFA10 belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect NDUFA10 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of NDUFA10 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

NADH dehydrogenase [ubiquinone] 1 alpha subcomplex subunit 10 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the NDUFA10 gene. The NDUFA10 protein is a subunit of NADH dehydrogenase (ubiquinone), which is located in the mitochondrial inner membrane and is the largest of the five complexes of the electron transport chain. Mutations in subunits of NADH dehydrogenase (ubiquinone), also known as Complex I, frequently lead to complex neurodegenerative diseases such as Leigh's syndrome. Furthermore, reduced NDUFA10 expression levels due to FOXM1-directed hypermethylation are associated with human squamous cell carcinoma and may be related to other forms of cancer.

Structure The NDUFA10 gene is located on the q arm of chromosome 2 in position 37.3 and spans 68,031 base pairs. The gene produces a 41 kDa protein composed of 355 amino acids. NDUFA10 is a subunit of the enzyme NADH dehydrogenase (ubiquinone), the largest of the respiratory complexes. The structure is L-shaped with a long, hydrophobic transmembrane domain and a hydrophilic domain for the peripheral arm that includes all the known redox centers and the NADH binding site. It has been noted that the N-terminal hydrophobic domain has the potential to be folded into an alpha helix spanning the inner mitochondrial membrane with a C-terminal hydrophilic domain interacting with globular subunits of Complex I. The highly conserved two-domain structure suggests that this feature is critical for the protein function and that the hydrophobic domain acts as an anchor for the NADH dehydrogenase (ubiquinone) complex at the inner mitochondrial membrane. NDUFA10 is one of about 31 hydrophobic subunits that form the transmembrane region of Complex I, but it is an accessory subunit that is believed not to be involved in catalysis. The predicted secondary structure is primarily alpha helix, but the carboxy-terminal half of the protein has high potential to adopt a coiled-coil form. The amino-terminal part contains a putative beta sheet rich in hydrophobic amino acids that may serve as mitochondrial import signal.

Function The human NDUFA10 gene codes for a subunit of Complex I of the respiratory chain, which transfers electrons from NADH to ubiquinone. NADH binds to Complex I and transfers two electrons to the isoalloxazine ring of the flavin mononucleotide (FMN) prosthetic arm to form FMNH2. The electrons are transferred through a series of iron-sulfur (Fe-S) clusters in the prosthetic arm and finally to coenzyme Q10 (CoQ), which is reduced to ubiquinol (CoQH2). The flow of electrons changes the redox state of the protein, resulting in a conformational change and pK shift of the ionizable side chain, which pumps four hydrogen ions out of the mitochondrial matrix.

Clinical significance NDUFA10 demonstrated significantly downregulated mRNA expression levels in human squamous cell carcinoma, due to FOXM1-induced hypermethylation. FOXM1 is a known oncogene that has been implicated in all human cancer types. It operates by inhibiting tumor suppressor genes through promoter hypermethylation, among other mechanisms. Mutations in NDUFA10 have also been associated with Leigh disease resulting from complex I deficiency.

Interactions NDUFA10 has been shown to have 56 binary protein-protein interactions including 55 co-complex interactions. NDUFA10 appears to interact with RAB8A.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with NDUFA10

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what NDUFA10 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to NDUFA10 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about NDUFA10 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of NDUFA10

In research: NDUFA10 appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses NDUFA10 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: NDUFA10 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Genes on human chromosome 2, Mitochondrial proteins, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for NDUFA10 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study NDUFA10 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what NDUFA10 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain NDUFA10 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is NDUFA10 in simple terms?

Why does NDUFA10 matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study NDUFA10?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on NDUFA10.