Effects of Terahertz Wave Irradiation on ATP Synthase

Energy metabolism is a necessary process to maintain life processes. Observing the cellular energy metabolism process reveals the pivotal roles of ATP in cellular life. Compared to plants, animals primarily rely on ATP synthase to generate the required ATP without the ability of plants to utilise light energy. The absorption characteristics of biological macromolecules are mainly located in the terahertz frequency. When terahertz waves act on ion channels, effective regulation is achieved. As the site of ATP generation, ATP synthase produces ATP through proton translocation coupling, and it may also be regulated by terahertz waves. With the help of molecular dynamics, the characteristic absorption spectrum of the proton translocation site of yeast ATP synthase was roughly calculated. Combined with the existing theoretical results, the 34.8 THz photons may affect the ATP production by ATP synthase. Then, the ATP content with and without 34.9 THz was examined. The increase in the intracellular ATP content existed after the effect of 34.9 THz. Therefore, this special light energy can be utilized by animals to support the ongoing processes of energy metabolism in possible.