The overall process in converting glucose to ATP can be divided into 3 separate stages or sub-processes; 1) Glycolysis, 2) the Kreb Cycle, and 3) the Electron Transport Chain. The substance(s) output from one sub-process is input into the sub-process that follows for further processing.
Glycolysis is the first stage. In glycolysis, the glucose molecule is split and the resulting pyruvate and NADH is transfered into the mitochondria. The pyruvate is further converted and processed in the second stage, the Kreb Cycle, to produce more NADH and FADH2. Finally, the NADH and FADH2 from the Kreb cycle and the NADH from glycolysis is input into the Electron Transport Chain. The Electron Transport chain is the final process and output from this is the ATP that the cell uses to fuel all activities in the cell that need energy.
A couple things to retain from this page:
Note: Most people will have heard the term aerobic in association with types of exercise. Aerobic exercises are those that require an increase in oxygen intake, in other words cause you to breathe heavily. The lungs get the signal to breathe more when at the cell level the cell is using more oxygen as indicated by increased CO2 output. Aerobic exercise actually creates an anaerobic condition at the cell level.
Related Links |
| Mitochondria |
| Metabolism: The totality of chemical reactions of living matter. |
| Electron Transport and Oxidative Phosphorylation |
| Kreb's Cycle |