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Cellular respiration

Review your understanding of cellular respiration in this free article aligned to NGSS standards.

Key points:

  • Cellular respiration is a process that happens inside an organism’s cells. This process releases energy that can be used by the organism to live and grow.
  • Many food molecules are broken down into glucose, a simple sugar. Glucose is used in cellular respiration.
  • Glucose and oxygen are inputs of cellular respiration. Carbon dioxide and water are outputs. This can be seen in the overall equation for cellular respiration:
CA6HA12OA6+6OA26COA2+6HA2Oglucoseoxygencarbonwaterdioxide
  • In multicellular organisms, the steps of cellular respiration occur in the cytosol and the mitochondria.
Cellular respiration provides energy that an organism can use to live and grow. Image created with Biorender.com.

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