Subject: GENERAL BIOLOGY 2 WEEK #_____

Name: ____________________ Grade & Section: ________

Teacher: IRENE BELLE D. LESIGUES Date: _________________

TANAUAN NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

LAS-GENERAL BIOLOGY 1 Week 3 (Quarter 4)
CELLULAR RESPIRATION

I. Learning Target: Differentiate aerobic from anaerobic respiration.

(STEM _BIO11/12-lla-j-6)
Explain the major features and sequence the chemical events of
cellular respiration. (STEM_BIO11/12-lla-j-7)

II. Specific Learning Targets:

Define related terms.
Discuss aerobic and anaerobic respiration.
Discuss cellular respiration.

II. Concept Notes:

All organisms require energy to function. As mentioned earlier,

this energy used by the cells is in the form of ATP. The most efficient
way for cells to harvest this energy is through cellular respiration.
In humans, cellular respiration is necessary along with oxygen.
More ATP molecules are produced when enough oxygen is present in
the body. When you do intensive physical activities or when you are
in a stressful situation, do not forget to stop and breath in fresh air,
which contains oxygen. This can help reload your body with the
energy you need for that particular moment.

Cellular Respiration
Cellular respiration is the process that breaks down food
molecules, usually in the form of glucose, to turn into carbon dioxide
and water. The chemical equation for cellular respiration is C6H12 O6
+6O2 6H2O + 6CO2. This is the reverse chemical reaction of
photosynthesis. However, it undergoes a different process. In cellular
respiration, ATP is produced to be used in all cellular processes that
require energy.
The chemical equation of cellular respiration is also a redox
reaction because glucose has lost an electron, it is said to be
oxidized. Meanwhile, oxygen has gained some electrons, so it is said
to be reduced.

oxidation

C6H12 O6 +6O2 6 CO2 + 6 H2O

Reduction
 Also, note that a hydrogen atom is made up of a hydrogen ion
and a free electron, and thus when these hydrogen atoms are
removed from glucose, the same happens to the electrons. Similarly,
when hydrogen atoms are added to oxygen, so are the electrons.

Glucose is a high-energy molecule, whereas carbon dioxide and

water are low-energy molecules. In the chemical equation, the
breakdown of glucose to produce carbon dioxide and water releases
energy. This is the energy used in producing ATP.

In cellular respiration, the energy released from the breakdown

of glucose happens gradually. If the breakdown happens all the
same time, so much energy will be wasted as unused heat.
Depending on certain conditions, cellular respiration can create up
to an average yield of 36-38 ATP molecules which is about 39% of
the energy originally stored in glucose. This is already considered
efficient, as compared to other processes such as the conversion of
solar energy to electricity, which is only 15% efficient.

NAD+ and FAD

There are many metabolic reactions involved in cellular

respiration, and each is catalyzed by its own enzymes. One important
example is the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), which is a
coenzyme in the redox reaction. During oxidation,, NAD+ accepts two
electrons and a hydrogen ion, producing NADH. The high energy
electrons received by NAD+ are transported to the ETC. Cells need
just a little amount of NAD+ because it is used over and over again.
Another significant coenzyme in the redox reaction is flavin adenine
dinucleotide (FAD). Depending on the conditions where NAD+ cannot
be used, cells use FAD instead to accept two electrons and two
hydrogen ions become FADH2. Both NAD+ and FAD are important
electron carriers (coenzyme) in cellular respiration.

Phases of Cellular Respiration

Aerobic cellular respiration is the process wherein cells break

down the nutrients in food and turn them into ATP. This process uses
molecular oxygen, the most common oxidizing agent (electron
acceptor), in series of catabolic reactions that break down large
molecules to release energy. Aerobic cellular respiration is considered
an exothermic redox reaction.
Nutrients that are usually available for animal and plant use in
respiration include sugars, amino acids, and fatty acids. There are
various phases in the process of cellular respiration. These are
glycolysis, citric acid cycle (Kreb’s Cycle), and oxidative
phosphorylation (ETC and chemiosmosis).

Glycolysis

This is the first part of respiration. Glycolysis comes from the

greek words glycos, which means “sugar” and lysis means to split.
Glycolysis is the breakdown of glucose into two molecules of
pyruvate.

Glycolysis is a series of catabolic reactions that convert glucose

into pyruvate through 10 enzymatic steps. This process takes place in
the cytosol of the cell, not in the mitochondrion. Recall that the
cytosol is a fluid that serves as a site of many cellular processes.
During glycolysis, a net gain of two ATP molecules is produced.
Pyruvate, the other end product of glycolysis, will be used in the
aerobic respiration, provided that there is oxygen. This respiration is
done through the citric acid cycle, producing more energy to be used
by the cells.

In glycolysis, there is a district enzyme involved in each reaction.

The whole process of glycolysis can be conveniently grouped into the
energy-investment phase and the energy-harvesting phase. (Fig
11.5)
Fig 11.5
Glycolysis
starts with
glucose and
ends with two
pyruvate
molecules and
water
molecules. In
the energy
investment
phase, two ATP
molecules are
used. In energy
payoff phase,
four ATP
molecules are
used. In the
energy payoff
phase 4 ATP
molecules are
formed

Energy investment phase. At the onset of glycolysis, two ATP

molecules are used to activate glucose by adding phosphate.
Eventually, glucose separates into two three-carbon molecules. Each
three-carbon molecule has a phosphate group obtained from ATP
molecule. These three-carbon molecules will go through the same
series of reactions in the energy payoff phase.

Energy payoff phase. After the splitting of glucose, another inorganic

phosphate is added into each three-carbon molecule, and thus each
now has two phosphate groups. These will be used later in
synthesizing the two ATP molecules through the process called
substrate-level ATP synthesis or substrate-level phosphorylation,
wherein the enzyme helps attach an inorganic phosphate to ADP to
produce ATP. At the same time, the electrons in each three-carbon
molecule are now removed and are accompanied by hydrogen ions.
These hydrogen ions are picked up y NAD+ separately. Because each
NADH molecule carries two high-energy electrons, they can be
carried to the ETC for NAD+ to be recycled and used again, provided
that oxygen is available.

After the first substrate level phosphorylation, water is removed

from the three-carbon molecules. Another substance-level
phosphorylation occurs, wherein two pyruvate molecules are finally
produced by synthesizing two more ATPs.
Energy-coupling happens in glycolysis. AN endergonic reaction
happens when tow ATP molecules are used to divide glucose into two
three-carbon molecules. An exergonic reaction happens, however,
when four ATP molecules are released upon creating the pyruvate
molecules.

All in all, four ATP are produced, but remember that two ATP
molecules were used in the energy investment phase. SO the next
gain in the entire glycolysis is two ATP molecules.

Transition Reaction

When oxygen is present, two pyruvate molecules undergo a

transition reaction, which takes place in the matrix of the
mitochondrion. In this process the pyruvate molecules breaks down
into a two-carbon acetyl group and carbon dioxide. Electrons are also
transferred to the NAD to form NADH. Because there are two
pyruvate molecules produced during glycolysis, the transition
reaction occurs twice for every glucose molecule. The enzymes that
facilitate the transition reactions are arranged in the matrix.

Each two-carbon acetyl group is combined with a molecule called

co-enzyme A(CoA) to form acetyl coenzyme a (acetyl CoA) before it
goes into the citric cycle. The transition reaction can be summarized
in this chemical equation:

2 pyruvate + 2CoA 2 acetyl CoA + 2 CO2

The two NADH molecules will carry electrons to the ETC. Meanwhile,
the Co2 molecules that are produced in the transition reaction freely
diffuse out of the cell. This will eventually go into the blood stream to
be released from the organism’s body through the respiratory
system.

Citric Acid Cycle (Krebs Cycle)

The citric acid cycle or the Kreb’s cycle, named after Adolf Krebs
(1900-1981), a chemist who developed the concept of the citric acid
cycle in the 1930s, is a cyclical metabolic pathway that also occurs in
the mitochondrial matrix.
 The citric acid cycle begins with acetyl CoA joining the four-
carbon oxaloacetate. In the process, six-carbon citric acid molecule is
produced. During the cycle, oxidation happens when electrons are
accepted by NAD+ in
three enhances and by
FAD in one instance.
Thus in the entire cycle,
there are three NADH
molecules and one
FADH2 molecule
produced.

In addition two carbon dioxide molecules are also produced.

Substrate-level phosphorylation also happens in this cycle, wherein
an enzyme facilitates the addition of inorganic phosphate to ADP.

In summary, each citric cycle produces two carbon dioxide

molecules., three NADH molecules, as FADH2 molecule, and an ATP
molecule. Because the citric acid cycle normally turns twice for every
glucose molecule, the total amount of products produced is as follow:

2 acetyl CoA 4 CO2

6 NAD+ 6 NADH

2 FAD 2 FADH2

2 ADP + 2 phosphate 2 ATP

Oxidative Phosphorylation

Oxygen plays a significant role in aerobic cellular respiration

because it serves as the final acceptor of electrons. This occurs
through oxidative phosphorylation, a process that produces ATP
through the oxidation of electron carriers in the presence of oxygen.
The absence of O2 will not allow this process to proceed. Thus, no
ATP can be produced. Because the role of oxygen is very important in
the production of ATP anything that limits the amount of oxygen to
be made available in oxidative phosphorylation can be fatal to he
organism. Oxidative phosphorylation comprises two parts; the
electron transport chain and chemiosmosis.

Electron Transport Chain

In lost organism, the ETC is located in the cristae of the

mitochondrion. It is a series of carriers that transport or carry
electrons from one protein to another. The ETC works in a manner
wherein the high-energy electrons stay as the low-energy electrons
leave. The high-energy electrons that go to the ETC are carried by
NADH and FADH. When NADH loses its electrons, it becomes oxidized
to FAD when it gives up its electrons. This redox reaction occurs as
the electron moves down the chain. From there, oxygen receives the
electrons that have spent energy from the last of the carriers. As
soon as oxygen receives the electrons that have spent energy from
the last of the carriers. As soon as oxygen receives the electrons it
combines with hydrogen ions; thus , water is produced.

Fig 11.8 In the ETC, the electrons in NADH pass through three protein
carriers, whereas the electrons in FADH2 pass through two protein carriers.
Oxygen is the final acceptor in the ETC; it combines with hydrogen ions to
produce water.
 From the time NADH delivers high-energy electrons to the first
carrier all the way to the last, so much energy has already been
captured. This is enough to permit the production of three ATP
molecules by the time the electrons reach O2 as the final acceptor.
Once NADH NAD+ which can pick up more hydrogen atoms on their
way back to the chain. This coenzyme recycling process shows the
efficiency in cellular activity.

On the other hand, FADH2 can also deliver high-energy electrons,

bringing two more ATP molecules by the time it reaches the end of
the ETC. like NAD+, FADH2 is oxidized to FAD, which can also be
recycled in the ETC.

IV. Activities:

A. Table Completion

Use a table to clearly show the difference between aerobic

and anaerobic respiration.

B. Flow Chart

Make a flow chart showing the major events of cellular

respiration.

Prepared:

IRENE BELLE D. LESIGUES, LPT

SHS Dept. Head Designate

Concurred: Approved:

LORLIAT S. RICABLANCA, DM MICHALE A. REGIS, CE, MM, MAT

SHS Assistant Principal II Principal IV