ATP or adenosine triphosphate: Adenosine triphosphate consists of a flat, double-ring nitrogenous compound called a purine (adenosine) linked to a single ring sugar (ribose) and three phosphates. The energy in the compound comes from the phosphates which release a large amount of energy when they are removed ("high-energy bond"). In the pictures carbon atoms are shown in gray, nitrogen in blue, oxygen in red and phosphate in orange (hydrogens are not shown). |