Clearly, if these two reactions were allowed to proceed simultaneously at a high rate in the same cell, a large amount of chemical energy would be dissipated as heat.
[6] Not only does miR-378 result in lower body fat mass due to enhanced lipolysis it is also speculated that futile cycles regulate metabolism to maintain energy homeostasis.
miR-378 has a unique function in regulating metabolic communication between the muscle and adipose tissues to control energy homeostasis at whole-body levels.
[6] To understand how presence of a futile cycle helps maintain low levels of ATP and generation heat in some species we look at metabolic pathways dealing with reciprocal regulation of glycolysis and gluconeogenesis.
Generation of heat is critically important for the gas gland cells to synthesize lactic acid because the process is strongly inhibited if ATP is accumulated.
The futile cycle involving Fbp and Pfk is used by bumble bees to produce heat in flight muscles and warm up their bodies considerably at low ambient temperatures.