ANAEROBIC

• Continued anaerobic respiration results in the build up of lactate, which needs to be broken down. Cells can convert lactate back into pyruvate, which is then able to enter aerobic respiration at the Krebs cycle. In addition, liver cells have the ability to convert lactate into glucose, which can then be respired aerobically (if oxygen is now present) or stored for later use.
• When one mole of glucose is respired anaerobically, only 2 moles of ATP are produced. Explain why less energy is released in anaerobic respiration.

  glucose only partly broken down (lactate formation)
•  At the end of a sprint race, a runner continues to breathe rapidly for some time. Explain the advantage of this.

  • runner produced lactic acid
  • oxygen destroys lactic acid
• production of ethenal/ lactate regenerated oxidised NAD meaning glycolysis can still occur even when there is a low amount of oxygen