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Steps In Cell Transspiration : The Goal Of Cellular Respiration

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The goal of cellular respiration, is to convert glucose into to adenosine triphosphate also known as ATP. The first step in cellular respiration is glycolysis which takes place in the cytoplasm. Where glucose goes in and is broken down into two, three carbon molecules called pyruvate. Glycolysis also produces 2 ATP’s, and 2 NADH’s. Next the 2 molecules of pyruvate goes through pyruvate oxidation still in the cytoplasm where it is oxidized into acetyl CoA. Acetyl CoA then moves into the mitochondria and the citric acid cycle where it undergoes oxidation to produce three molecules of NADH and one molecule FADH2, 2 CO2, and 1 molecule of ATP. In the final stage, NADH and FADH2 electrons are donated to the electron transport chain in the inner mitochondrial matrix. Where they go through four complexes and are oxidized. The energy from the electrons activates proteins to pump hydrogen ions to the inner membrane space from the matrix. Once the electrons activate protein four, they no longer possess energy. The electrons then bind with oxygen, which is the final electron acceptor and bind with hydrogen to create water. ATP synthase takes a ADP and a phosphate molecule bind together through a process called oxidative phosphorylation. Finally producing 32 molecules of ATP are produced. If cellular respiration were to not run as smoothly, and oxygen was absent from respiration fermentation would occur.
Fermentation happens in the event that oxygen is absent from being the final

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