"Cellular respiration is the process by which biological fuels are oxidised in the presence of an inorganic electron acceptor, such as oxygen, to drive the bulk production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which contains energy."
An examination of the pathways and mechanisms that cells use to extract energy from nutrients.
ATP and Energy Transfer: An introduction to adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and its role in energy transfer and use in the cell.
Enzymes: An overview of enzymes and how they play a critical role in metabolic pathways.
Metabolic Pathways: A discussion of the various metabolic pathways involved in energy production, including glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation.
Cellular Respiration: An overview of the process of cellular respiration, including its three stages: glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation.
Photosynthesis: An introduction to photosynthesis, its chemical reactions and its role in energy storage in plants.
Energy and Metabolism: Explanation on the molecular basis for energy storage in molecules, fuels for energy (carbohydrates, proteins, and fats), and the process of energy acquisition and metabolism.
Metabolic Regulation: A description of the cellular mechanisms that regulate metabolic pathways to maintain cellular homeostasis.
Anaerobic and Aerobic Respiration: A discussion of the differences between anaerobic and aerobic respiration pathways and how they relate to energy production in different organisms.
Mitochondria: A breakdown of the role of mitochondria in energy production in eukaryotic cells and the processes of oxidative phosphorylation and the electron transport chain.
Cellular Transport: Understanding facilitated diffusion, active transport, and other transport mechanisms used by cells to move molecules across their membranes.
Glycolysis: A detailed explanation of glycolysis, its reactions, and its regulation.
Citric Acid Cycle: An overview of the TCA cycle including the regulation of each step and the assimilation of other biomolecules including amino acids and fatty acids.
Energy and Thermodynamics: Understanding the laws of thermodynamics and how they apply to cellular energy metabolism.
Cellular Proteins and the Krebs Cycle: Understanding the role of biomolecules like pyruvate and acetyl CoA and their incorporation into the Krebs cycle.
Oxidative Phosphorylation: An explanation of the electron transport chain and chemiosmosis in oxidative phosphorylation, how ADP is phosphorylated to form ATP, and the vital role of oxygen.
ATP Synthase: An understanding of the enzyme that controls the synthesis of ATP in living cells using a proton gradient.
Metabolic Diseases: An introduction to common metabolic diseases and disorders such as diabetes, obesity, and disorders of fatty acid metabolism.
Energy Storage in Plants: Acquiring knowledge about the various storage structures and mechanisms of plants, carbohydrates, starch, cellulose, and fats.
Genetic regulation of metabolism: Understanding the regulation of metabolic pathways by genes and other genetic mechanisms.
Bioluminescence: Examining the process of bioluminescence in organisms and its link to energy and metabolism.
Kinetic Energy: Kinetic energy is the energy of motion. It is the energy that an object possesses due to its motion. For example, a rolling ball has kinetic energy because it is moving.
Potential Energy: Potential energy is the energy that an object has due to its position or state. It can be thought of as energy that is stored and waiting to be released. For example, a boulder sitting on top of a hill has potential energy because it can be released and roll down the hill.
Thermal Energy: Thermal energy is the energy that is generated by the movement of particles within a system. It is often referred to as heat energy, and is related to the temperature of the system.
Chemical Energy: Chemical energy is the energy that is released or absorbed during a chemical reaction. It is the energy that is stored in the bonds between atoms and molecules, and can be released when these bonds are broken.
Electrical Energy: Electrical energy is the energy that is generated by the flow of electrons through a conductor. It is the energy that powers electrical devices such as light bulbs and televisions.
Radiant Energy: Radiant energy is the energy that is emitted by electromagnetic radiation. This includes visible light, infrared radiation, and ultraviolet radiation.
Mechanical Energy: Mechanical energy is the energy that is produced by the physical movement of an object. This includes both kinetic and potential energy.
Anabolism: Anabolism is the process of building or synthesizing molecules. It requires energy and often involves the use of enzymes to catalyze chemical reactions.
Catabolism: Catabolism is the process of breaking down molecules. It releases energy and often involves the use of enzymes to catalyze chemical reactions.
Aerobic respiration: Aerobic respiration is the process by which cells use oxygen to break down glucose and produce ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the energy currency of cells.
Anaerobic respiration: Anaerobic respiration is the process by which cells produce ATP in the absence of oxygen. It is less efficient than aerobic respiration and produces lactic acid as a byproduct.
Fermentation: Fermentation is a type of anaerobic respiration that occurs in some organisms, such as yeast. It produces ethanol or lactic acid as a byproduct.
"Cellular respiration may be described as a set of metabolic reactions and processes that take place in the cells of organisms to convert chemical energy from nutrients into ATP, and then release waste products."
"The reactions involved in respiration are catabolic reactions, which break large molecules into smaller ones, producing large amounts of energy (ATP)."
"Respiration is one of the key ways a cell releases chemical energy to fuel cellular activity."
"Although cellular respiration is technically a combustion reaction, it is an unusual one because of the slow, controlled release of energy from the series of reactions."
"Nutrients that are commonly used by animal and plant cells in respiration include sugar, amino acids and fatty acids."
"The most common oxidizing agent is molecular oxygen (O2)."
"The chemical energy stored in ATP (the bond of its third phosphate group to the rest of the molecule can be broken allowing more stable products to form, thereby releasing energy for use by the cell) can then be used to drive processes requiring energy, including biosynthesis, locomotion or transportation of molecules across cell membranes."
"The inorganic electron acceptor, such as oxygen, is necessary for oxidizing the biological fuels and driving the production of ATP."
"The metabolic reactions and processes of respiration convert chemical energy into ATP and release waste products."
"The chemical energy stored in ATP can be used to drive processes requiring energy, including biosynthesis, locomotion or transportation of molecules across cell membranes."
"Cellular respiration is an unusual combustion reaction because of the slow, controlled release of energy from the series of reactions."
"The end products of respiration include ATP, energy, and waste products."
"The overall reaction of cellular respiration occurs in a series of biochemical steps, some of which are redox reactions."
"Catabolic reactions involved in respiration break large molecules into smaller ones, producing large amounts of energy (ATP)."
"Molecular oxygen (O2) serves as the most common oxidizing agent in cellular respiration."
"Sugar, amino acids, and fatty acids are examples of nutrients commonly used as biological fuels in respiration."
"To convert chemical energy from nutrients into ATP, which contains energy, and release waste products."
"Cellular respiration releases chemical energy to fuel cellular activity."
"The energy stored in ATP can be used to fuel processes such as biosynthesis, locomotion, or transportation of molecules across cell membranes."