1. Glycolysis: Glucose is broken down into two molecules of pyruvate, generating a small amount of ATP and NADH.
2. Pyruvate oxidation: Pyruvate enters the mitochondria and is converted into acetyl-CoA, producing NADH.
3. Krebs cycle (Citric Acid Cycle): Acetyl-CoA is further oxidized in a series of reactions, producing NADH, FADH2, and ATP.
4. Electron transport chain: NADH and FADH2 donate electrons to a series of protein complexes in the inner mitochondrial membrane, generating a proton gradient. This drives ATP synthase to produce ATP.
5. Chemiosmosis: Protons flow back into the mitochondrial matrix through ATP synthase, resulting in the production of ATP.
Overall, cellular respiration produces a total of 36-38 molecules of ATP per molecule of glucose.
Stages of cellular respiration
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