Cellular Respiration
 
  1. What is an oxidation/reduction reaction and how do these reactions result in the release of energy?  In the overall summarizing reaction of cellular respiration (C6H12O6 + O2 --> CO2 + H2O), what is being oxidized?  What is being reduced?
  2. Understand the function of electron carrier molecules (NAD+, and FAD) in cellular respiration.  How are they reduced to NADH and FADH2?
  3. Where in the cell/mitochondria (matrix, inner mitochondrial membrane, intermembrane space) do each of the three stages of cellular respiration occur?
  4. What do we mean when we say that energy is harnessed during glycolysis through substrate level phosphorylation of ADP and oxidation of glucose to pyruvate.   What happens to these pyruvate molecules if oxygen is present (aerobic metabolism)?  What happens to them if it is not present (anaerobic metabolism)?
  5. Describe in general the two ways energy is harnessed during the Krebs cycle.  How are ATP, NADH, FADH2 produced during the Krebs cycle?   Why do we refer to the Krebs cycle as the main oxidative pathway of cellular respiration?
  6. Once the NADHs and FADH2s of glycolysis and the Krebs cycle are produced, what is their function in the cell?
  7. Describe the Chemiosmotic Model of ATP production during the Electron Transport Chains of cellular respiration with respect to the following:
  8. Describe the anaerobic pathway know as fermentation. Understand that muscle cells are facultative anaerobes (they can switch between aerobic cellular respiration and fermentation) and why.
  9. How are other organic molecules like fats and proteins metabolized?