Aerobic & Anaerobic Respiration

• Aerobic respiration is respiration using oxygen. It is the most efficient way to transfer energy from glucose.
• Aerobic respiration goes on all the time in plants and animals.
• Most of the reactions in aerobic respiration happen inside the mitochondtoa
• Word equation for aerobic respiration: glucose + oxygen ---> carbon dioxide + water
• Anaerobic respiration is used if there is not enough oxygen. For example, if you do vigorous exercise, your body can't supply enough oxygen to your muscles.
• Anaerobic respiration is the incomplete break down of glucose, so this is the equation: glucose ---> lactic acid
• anaerobic respiration is only useful in emergencies
• Anaerobic respiration in plants and yeast:

  • Plants and test cells can respire without oxygen
  • they produce ethanol and carbon dioxide
  • glucose ---> ethanol + carbon dioxide
  • anaerobic respiration in yeast cells is called fermentation
  • In the food and drink industry fermentation is great because it lets us make bread and alcoholic drinks
  • In bread making it's the carbon dioxide that makes bread rise
  • In beer and wine making fermentation produces alochol