Respiration: Aerobic and Anaerobic

Syllabus tag: KCSE | Biology | Form 2 | Topic 4 Respiration

Lesson objectives

By the end of this topic, you should be able to:

• Define respiration and distinguish it from breathing.
• Describe aerobic respiration and write its equation.
• Describe anaerobic respiration in plants, micro-organisms and animals.
• Explain oxygen debt and compare the two forms of respiration.

Summary

Respiration is the chemical release of energy from food inside every living cell. Aerobic respiration uses oxygen, breaks glucose down completely to carbon dioxide and water, and releases much energy. Anaerobic respiration occurs without oxygen, breaks glucose down incompletely, and releases far less energy — producing alcohol in plants and yeast, and lactic acid in animals.