Anaerobic respiration

• In plants:

  • pyruvate at the end of glycolysis loses a molecule of CO2 and accepts hydrogen from rdeuced NAD to produce ethanol
  • pyruvate + reduced NAD -> ethanol + CO2 + oxidised NAD
• In animals:

  • Each pyruvate takes up two hydrogen ions from the reduced NAD produced in glycolysis to form lactate
  • pyruvate + reduced NAD -> lactate + oxidised NAD
• Lactate is transported back into muscle cells where it can be converted back into pyruvate by an enzyme called lactate dehydrogenase.