The field of oxidative phosphorylation began with the report in 1906 by Arthur Harden of a vital role for phosphate in cellular fermentation, but initially only sugar phosphates were known to be involved.
O estudo da fosforilación oxidativa principiou en 1906 co informe de Arthur Harden sobre o papel vital do fosfato na fermentación celular, aínda que inicialmente se pensaba que só os azucre-fosfato estaban implicados.