Suppose an organism can alternate between aerobic and anaerobic respiration. If it had to use anaerobic respiration exclusively, how many glucose molecules must it break down to generate the same ATP as it would in aerobic respiration?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

In anaerobic respiration, glucose is broken down into 2 molecules of ATP, while in aerobic respiration, glucose is broken down into 38 molecules of ATP. Therefore, the organism would need to break down 19 glucose molecules to generate the same ATP as it would in aerobic respiration.

Suppose an Organism Can Alternate Between Aerobic and Anaerobic Respiration