What is the process by which glucose is broken down to release energy?

The process by which glucose is broken down to release energy is known as cellular respiration. This is a multi-step metabolic pathway that occurs in the cells of organisms, allowing them to convert the chemical energy stored in glucose into a usable form of energy, ATP (adenosine triphosphate).

Cellular respiration can be aerobic, which requires oxygen and yields a higher amount of energy per molecule of glucose, or anaerobic, which occurs in the absence of oxygen and results in less energy yield. During cellular respiration, glucose undergoes glycolysis, followed by additional reactions in the mitochondria, such as the Krebs cycle and oxidative phosphorylation, depending on the presence of oxygen.

This process not only provides energy for various cellular activities but also plays a crucial role in maintaining cellular functions and supporting metabolic activities essential for life. Other options, like photosynthesis, involve the conversion of light energy into chemical energy, but they do not break glucose down for energy. Fermentation is an energy-releasing process that occurs in low oxygen conditions, typically as an alternative pathway to cellular respiration but does not encompass the complete aerobic breakdown of glucose. Glycolysis is the initial stage of cellular respiration where glucose is partially broken down, but by itself, it does not account