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Although Crane’s hypothesis was embraced
relatively quickly by electrophysiologists and epithelial physiologists, the
biochemical community found Mitchell’s hypothesis not only unacceptable, but
repulsive primarily because some of the most well recognized biochemists in
the world were convinced that a high-energy phosphate intermediate which
could be isolated and identified must be involved in oxidative
phosphorylation. Furthermore, rather than use standard physical chemical
nomenclature, Mitchell preferred to improvise his own terms which put off
biochemists and physiologist alike. Finally, the whole idea that an ion
gradient might drive a covalent reaction like ATP synthesis seemed
absolutely ridiculous to most.
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