# Electron Carriers --- **Eelectron carriers** are a class of molecule that is capable of [[redox#Reduction|recieving one or two electrons]] from one compound and then [[redox#Oxidation|donating those electrons]] to another compound. They are used in biological [[metabolism]]. As they take or give electrons, their [[energy|potential energy]] raises and falls accordingly. ## Types of Electron Carriers Electron carriers can come in two types, proteins and quinones. The important feature that a particular electron carrier needs to have more [[electronegativity]] than the molecule it will oxidize, and less [[electronegativity]] than the molecule it will reduce. ### Proteins The most common **electron carrier proteins** that we've learned about are [[NAD]], [[NADP]] and [[FAD]]. ### Quinones [[coenzyme q]] Bacteria use two types of quinones for electron carriers, [[coenzyme q|ubiquinone]] and [[ETC (bacterial)|menaquinone]]. ## Electron with Occational Proton Electron carriers (sometimes? usually?) gain a proton when they gain an electron, which you see as a [[hydrogen ion|H+]]. ___