Cellular respiration

Waiora Tuatahi
How?
Does the body get energy?

From the breakdown of food

What is the form of energy?

ATP molecules
Stages

There are 3 stages to cellular respiration

Glycolysis

Krebs cycle

Electron transport chain (ETC)

Cellular respiration is

Exergonic = produces energy

Catabolic= breaks down polymers

(carbohydrates = glucose molecules = ATP
molecules)

1 glucose molecule + 6 oxygen molecules = 6

carbon dioxide molecules, 6 water molecules &
36-38 molecules of ATP
 Glycolysis
Glycolysis = carbohydrate molecules = glucose molecules = pyruvate molecules

Occurs in the cytosol of the cell, does not require oxygen

First stage = energy is used to phosphorylate (add phosphate) the 6-carbon glucose molecule

 This means that a phosphate is taken from ATP (which becomes ADP) and added to the glucose
molecule

The glucose is now fructose (fructose is more chemically reactive)

 An enzyme cuts the fructose molecule apart, producing two 3-carbon molecules of pyruvate

 Then the phosphate is removed (via several enzyme actions)

The pyruvate molecules are now ready for the next stage (the Krebs Cycle)

Glycolysis produces 2 ATP molecules, 2 water molecules and 2 NADH molecules (these are another
type of energy-rich molecule)
Krebs cycle
As pyruvate is being moved from the cytosol to the interior of the
mitochondrion, a microenzyme removes one carbon and two oxygens
from each molecule

The resulting two-carbon sugar is called Aceytl CoA

The Krebs Cycle is an aerobic process = oxygen is required

The Krebs Cycle is a series of steps, catalyzed by enzymes, where the

Aceytl CoA molecule is completely oxidized

Two Krebs Cycles = 4 carbon dioxide molecules, 6 NADH molecules, 2

ATP molecules and 2 FADH2 molecules (yet another energy-yielding
molecule)

ETC – electron transfer chain
Only a small amount of energy has been produced so far

 Most of the energy in the glucose molecule is released by the ETC and oxidative phosphorylation

 The ETC is a network of electron-carrying proteins located in the inner membrane of the mitochondrion

 These proteins transfer electrons from one to another – like a chain

 The electrons are added, with protons, to oxygen, which is the final electron acceptor

 Water is produced

 The ATP is produced by “proton motive force”

 This force is a store of potential energy created by the gradient formed when hydrogens (protons) are
moved across a biological membrane

 The ETC = a gradient through which ATP can be made (chemiosmosis)

 The electron transport chain produces the remaining 32-34 ATP.