Understand that cellular respiration is a metabolic process that converts biochemical energy from nutrients into adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and then releases waste products.
Identify the main stages of cellular respiration: glycolysis, the citric acid cycle (Krebs cycle), and oxidative phosphorylation.
Recognize that the process begins with glucose, a simple sugar, which is broken down during glycolysis to produce pyruvate, ATP, and NADH.
Acknowledge that oxygen is essential for the electron transport chain, which is the final stage of cellular respiration, where it acts as the final electron acceptor to form water.
Conclude that the primary reactants of cellular respiration are glucose (C₆H₁₂O₆) and oxygen (O₂), which are used to produce ATP, carbon dioxide (CO₂), and water (H₂O).