Respiration is of two types, aerobic respiration, and anaerobic respiration.

Aerobic Respiration: It is the process of cellular respiration that takes place in the presence of
oxygen gas to produce energy from food. This type of respiration is common in most of the plants
and animals, birds, humans, and other mammals. In this process, water and carbon dioxide are
produced as end products.
Anaerobic Respiration: It is a process which takes place in the absence of oxygen gas. In this
process, the energy is obtained by the breakdown of glucose in the absence of oxygen. One of
the best examples of anaerobic respiration is the process of fermentation in yeast.

Aerobic Respiration Definition

“Aerobic respiration is the process of producing cellular energy in the presence of
oxygen.”

What is Aerobic Respiration?

Aerobic respiration is a biological process in which food glucose is converted into energy in the
presence of oxygen. The chemical equation of aerobic respiration is as given below-

Glucose (C6H12O6) + Oxygen 6(O2) → Carbon-dioxide 6(CO2) + Water 6 (H2O) + Energy (ATP)
According to the above-given chemical equation, energy is released by splitting the glucose
molecules with the help of oxygen gas. At the end of the chemical reaction, energy, water
molecules, and carbon dioxide gas are released as the by-products or end products of the
reactions.
The 2900 kJ of energy is released during the process of breaking the glucose molecule and in
turn, this energy is used to produce ATP – Adenosine Triphosphate molecules which are used by
the system for various purposes.
Aerobic respiration process takes place in all multicellular organisms including animals, plants
and other living organisms.
During the respiration process in plants, the oxygen gas enters the plant cells through the
stomata, which is found in the epidermis of leaves and stem of a plant. With the help of the
photosynthesis process, all green plants synthesize their food and thus releases energy.
Also refer: Respiration
The below-given chemical equation describes the complete process of photosynthesis or the
aerobic respiration in plants.

Carbon-dioxide 6(CO2) + Water 6 (H2O) → Glucose (C6H12O6) + Oxygen 6(O2)

Aerobic Respiration Diagram

The aerobic respiration diagram given below represents the entire process of aerobic respiration.
The different cycles involved in aerobic respiration such as glycolysis, Krebs cycle, electron
transport chain are clearly mentioned in the diagram.
Steps of Aerobic Respiration
The complete process of aerobic respiration occurs in four different stages:

Glycolysis
It is the primary step of aerobic respiration is glycolysis and takes place within the cytosol of the
cell. During the glycolysis process, the glucose molecules are splitting and separated into two
ATP and two NADH molecules, which are later used in the process of aerobic respiration.

Formation of Acetyl Coenzyme A

The second step in aerobic respiration is the formation of acetyl coenzyme A. In this process,
pyruvate is oxidized in the mitochondria and 2-carbon acetyl group is produced. The newly
produced 2-carbon acetyl group binds with coenzyme A, producing acetyl coenzyme A.

Citric Acid Cycle

The third step in aerobic respiration is the citric acid cycle, which is also called the Krebs cycle. In
this stage of Aerobic respiration, the oxaloacetate combines with the acetyl-coenzyme A and
produces citric acid. The citric acid cycle undergoes a series of reactions and produces 2
molecules of carbon dioxide, 1 molecule of ATP, and reduced forms of NADH and FADH.

Electron Transport Chain

This is the last step in aerobic respiration. In this phase, the large amounts of ATP molecules are
produced by transferring the electrons from NADH and FADH. A single molecule of glucose
creates a total of 34 ATP molecules.
Also refer: Respiratory Quotient

Key Points on Aerobic Respiration

  Aerobic respiration is the process of utilisation of oxygen to breakdown glucose, amino
acids, fatty acids to produce ATP.
 The pyruvate is then converted into acetyl CoA in the mitochondrial matrix.
 The Kreb’s cycle occurs twice per glucose molecule.
 The protein complexes are arranged on the inner mitochondrial matrix so that the
electrons pass from one reacting molecule to the other. This is known as the electron
transport chain.
 ATP synthase produces ATP from ADP and inorganic phosphate

What is anaerobic respiration?


Anaerobic respiration transfers energy from glucose to cells.
 It occurs when oxygen is not present.
 It transfers large amounts of energy quickly.

WHEN DOES ANAEROBIC RESPIRATION OCCUR?

Imagine sprinting 100 metres. You need to transfer energy from glucose to your muscles very
quickly. However your body cannot get oxygen to its muscles quickly enough for aerobic respiration
to occur. This is why anaerobic respiration happens instead.

A model of glucose turning into lactic acid.

HOW DOES ANAEROBIC RESPIRATION WORK?

In anaerobic respiration, glucose breaks down without oxygen. The chemical reaction transfers
energy from glucose to the cell. Anaerobic respiration produces lactic acid, rather than carbon
dioxide and water. Unfortunately this can lead to painful muscle cramps.