In noncompetitive inhibition, a molecule binds to allosteric site, a site other than active site, hereby changing the three-dimensional structure of enzyme and ability to bind to its substrate. Many enzymes require an inorganic ion or nonprotein cofactor to function. Pathways of photosynthesis and aerobic respiration transform one form of energy into another. Without a constant input of solar energy, life could not exist. Photosynthesis uses energy to combine carbon dioxide and water to produce glucose.
Aerobic respiration releases energy by breakdown of glucose to carbon dioxide and water.
Both photosynthesis and respiration are metabolic pathways that use an electron transport system consisting of membrane-bound carriers to pass electrons from one carrier to another. Solar energy has energized electrons that transfer from carrier to carrier and release energy. At end of aerobic respiration, glucose has been oxidized to carbon dioxide and water and ATP have been produced. ATP synthesis was known to be coupled to the electron transport system. Peter Mitchell received 1978 Nobel prize for chemiosmotic theory of ATP production.