Lecture · Intro Biology
Cellular Respiration
Overview
- Cellular respiration converts nutrients into ATP, the cell's usable energy currency.
- Three major phases: glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation.
The Mitochondrion
- Double-membrane organelle; site of the citric-acid cycle and the electron transport chain.
- Contains its own circular DNA — evidence of its bacterial ancestry (endosymbiotic theory).
Oxidative Phosphorylation
- Electrons from NADH and FADH₂ move through the ETC, pumping H⁺ into the intermembrane space.
- ATP synthase uses the H⁺ gradient to phosphorylate ADP → ATP. Net yield ≈ 32 ATP per glucose.



