Compare aerobic respiration, anaerobic respiration and fermentation. How are the processes similar? How are they different? How do these processes determine which environment the organism can live in?

[Key terms to use in answer: electron transport chain, cytochrome, ATP, glucose, glycolysis, obligate aerobe, facultative anaerobe, microaerophile, obligate anaerobe, oxidase, catalase, peroxidase, CO ₂ , organic acids and alcohols, alternative substrates (other than glucose)]

 

Compare the following processes;

Aerobic respiration; this is the aerobic nutrients catabolism in to carbon dioxide, water and energy that includes an electron transport system in which molecular oxygen is the final electron acceptor. Most eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms use aerobic respiration to obtain energy from glucose.

Anaerobic respiration; this is the process by which glucose breaks down in the absence of oxygen. this chemical reaction transfers energy from glucose to the cell, hence this process produces lactic acid.

Fermentation; this is a chemical process in which molecules such as glucose are broken down anaerobically. It is the foaming that happens during wine and bear manufacture.

Similarities.

1. They are all chemical processes that uses specific reactants to give out specific products.
2. These reactions cannot take place in the absence of one of their essential reactant.

Differences,

1. Aerobic respiration its the catabolism of nutrients to energy, carbon dioxide and glucose and it involves the transport system of electrons in which molecular oxygen is the final acceptor of oxygen. Glucose is oxidized to produce carbon iv oxide and oxygen is reduced in order to produce water. The reaction is strongly driven reaction and it gives out energy as ATP molecules, and the type of ATP production is witnessed in aerobes and facultative aerobes. Obligate aerobes requires molecular oxygen because they use aerobic respiration for ATP production. Facultative anaerobes on the other hands are able to carry out aerobic respiration but can also switch to fermentation.

2.Anaerobic respiration; its a chemical reaction that transfers energy from glucose towards the cell. production of lactic acid causes pain in the muscle. The energy stored within the molecular bonds of fat or sugar molecules is used to make ATP by taking electrons from the fuel molecules and are used to power an electron transport chain.

3.Fermentation; it produces chemical changes through the action of enzyme in substrates, it is also the energy extraction from carbohydrate in the oxygen's absence. It is the primary means of producing ATP by organic nutrients anaerobically.

Determination of environment.

These processes are different chemical reactions that occurs in the presence of specific reactants and [produces different compounds. Hence they play a big role in determining the environments of various organisms as they utilize some factors that exists in an environment and produces others.