Teacher Notes for
How do biological organisms use energy?
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This analysis and discussion activity is designed to help students understand the basic principles
of how biological organisms use energy, with a focus on the roles of ATP and cellular
respiration. This activity provides a useful basic understanding of cellular respiration and
provides an important conceptual framework for students who will be learning the complex
specifics of cellular respiration. This activity concludes with a brief introduction to two
important principles: conservation of energy and the inefficiency of energy transformations.
Learning Goals
All organisms use a two-step process to provide the energy needed for most of their biological
processes:
First, chemical energy from organic molecules like glucose is transferred to ATP
molecules in a process called cellular respiration.
Then, ATP provides the energy for most biological processes.
Cellular respiration of organic compounds such as glucose provides the energy required to
synthesize ATP by adding a third phosphate to ADP (bringing together two negatively charged
phosphates). The following pair of chemical equations gives a simplified overview of the
cellular respiration of glucose:
C
6
H
12
O
6
+ 6 O
2
--------> 6 CO
2
+6 H
2
O
energy
~29 ADP + ~29 phosphate ---------> ~29 ATP
When ATP molecules break down to ADP plus phosphate, the separation of two negatively
charged phosphates releases energy; this provides the energy needed for many biological
processes (e.g. muscle contraction, pumping molecules and ions across cell membranes, and
synthesizing biological molecules).
Energy can be transformed from one type to another, but energy cannot be created or destroyed
by biological processes. All types of energy conversion are inefficient and result in the
production of heat. (These principles are the first law of thermodynamics and an implication of
the second law of thermodynamics, but this technical term is not used in the Student Handout.)
In accord with the Next Generation Science Standards ([Link]
generation-science-standards), this activity:
helps students to learn the Disciplinary Core Idea LS1.C: " Cellular respiration is a
chemical process whereby the bonds of food molecules and oxygen molecules are broken
and new compounds are formed that" can provide energy for biological processes.
engages students in recommended scientific practices, including constructing
explanations and critical thinking.
can be used to illustrate two Crosscutting Concepts, "Cause and effect: Mechanism and
explanation" and "Energy and matter: Flows, cycles and conservation".
helps students to prepare for Performance Expectation HS-LS1-7, "Use a model to
illustrate that cellular respiration is a chemical process whereby the bonds of food
molecules and oxygen molecules are broken and the bonds and new compounds are
formed resulting in a net transfer of energy."
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By Dr. Ingrid Waldron, University of Pennsylvania, 2014. These Teacher Notes, the related Student Handout, and other
activities for teaching biology are available at [Link]
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Suggestions for Teaching this Activity and Background Information
To maximize student participation and learning, I suggest that you have your students work in
pairs (or individually or in groups of three) to complete groups of related questions and then have
a class discussion after each group of related questions. In each discussion, you can probe
student thinking and help them to develop a sound understanding of the concepts and
information covered before moving on to the next group of related questions. You will probably
want to have a class discussion after each section of the Student Handout.
The Importance of ATP
Our cells are constantly using energy from organic molecules like glucose to make ATP and
using the ATP molecules to provide the energy for biological processes such as muscle
contraction, synthesizing molecules, and pumping ions and molecules into and out of cells.
You may want to point out that, although different types of organisms get their energy input
from different sources (e.g. food, sunlight), all biological organisms need to make ATP which
provides energy in a form that can be used for cellular processes. For example, you may want to
discuss with your students why plant cells need mitochondria even though they can make
glucose by photosynthesis.
In this introductory section, the following additional question may be useful for middle school
students:
Which molecule is like money that a cell can "earn" through cellular respiration and "spend"
to get things done?
ADP ___ ATP ___ CO
2
___ glucose ___
Students may inquire about where ADP comes from. Nucleotides like ADP are derived from
digestion of nucleic acids in food and also can be synthesized by the liver.
I. Cellular Respiration Transferring Energy from Organic Molecules to ATP
Question 3a is designed to help students understand the Disciplinary Core Idea that cellular
respiration is a chemical process whereby the bonds of food molecules and oxygen molecules are
broken and new compounds are formed and the energy released is captured in ATP molecules
which provide the energy for biological processes.
The molecular diagrams, together with the following information will help students understand
why energy is released by the reaction:
+ 6
>
6
+ 6
The potential energy stored in C-C or C-H bonds is greater than the potential energy stored in C-
O, C=O or H-O bonds In a C-O, C=O or H-O covalent bond, the pair of shared electrons is .
pulled closer to the oxygen nucleus. In contrast, in C-C and C-H bonds, the pair of shared
electrons is shared relatively equally; therefore, these electrons are farther from a positively
charged nucleus so they have more potential energy than the pairs of shared electrons in C-O,
C=O and H-O bonds. Thus, molecules like glucose which have a high proportion of C-C and C-
H bonds have more potential energy than CO
2
and H
2
O which have only C=O and H-O bonds.
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To introduce and reinforce these concepts, you may want to add the following question on page
2 of the Student Handout.
Notice that the atoms in the C
6
H
12
O
6
and O
2
molecules are reorganized as atoms in the CO
2
and H
2
O
molecules. Although the atoms stay the same, C
6
H
12
O
6
(the sugar glucose) has multiple C-C and C-H
bonds which have more stored chemical energy than the C=O and O-H bonds in CO
2
and H
2
O. In the first
chemical equation in 3a, use an asterisk to mark each higher energy C-C and C-H bond, and circle each
lower energy C=O and O-H bond.
Fatty acids and glycerol from fat molecules can also undergo cellular respiration. As shown in
the following diagram, these molecules have an even higher proportion of high-energy C-C and
C-H bonds than a glucose molecule. This is one important reason why fat provides more energy
per gram than carbohydrates (9 kcal per gram vs. 4; stored fat also has less associated water).
Given the mobility of animals, this greater energy density is an important advantage for fat as the
main energy storage molecule in animals.
Fat molecule (triglyceride)
Question 3b provides the opportunity to reinforce student understanding that the glucose for
cellular respiration ultimately comes from food molecules. The immediate source of glucose for
cellular respiration may be glycogen (a polymer that stores glucose) or conversion of fats or
amino acids to glucose. In addition, fatty acids or amino acids can be used directly in cellular
respiration.
In discussing question 3c, it should be mentioned that we need to breathe, not only to bring in
O
2
, but also to get rid of CO
2
.
The equation shown in question 4 seems to imply that there are no molecular precursors for
ATP. This equation can create the impression that ATP is made from the energy released by the
oxidation of glucose, but energy is not converted to matter. The energy released by cellular
respiration of glucose is used to join negatively charged ADP and phosphate to produce ATP.
To balance this equation, ADP and phosphate should be added to the left side. You may want to
refer to the conservation of matter, which will tie in with the conservation of energy, discussed at
the end of the activity. An additional point is that there should be some indication that cellular
respiration of a single molecule of glucose provides the energy to produce multiple molecules of
ATP.
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The equations for cellular respiration provided in this activity give a very simplified overview of
a very complex process. This figure summarizes the multiple steps of cellular respiration,
although of course it omits many of the specific steps.
(From "Biological Science" by Scott Freeman, Benjamin Cummings, 2011)
Notice that cellular respiration generates ~29 molecules of ATP for each glucose molecule; this
number is less than previously believed (and often erroneously stated in textbooks). Brief
explanations are provided in:
"Cellular Respiration and Photosynthesis Important Concepts, common
Misconceptions, and Learning Activities" (available at
[Link]
"Approximate Yield of ATP from Glucose, Designed by Donald Nicholson" by Brand,
2003, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education 31:2-4 (available at
[Link]
These recent findings are interesting as an example of how science progresses by a series of
successively more accurate approximations to the truth.
Notice also that O
2
does not interact directly with glucose, but rather combines with an electron
and H+ at the end of the electron transport chain to form water.
Aerobic cellular respiration is not the only process used to make ATP. When oxygen is not
available, our muscle cells, yeast cells, and many other organisms use glycolysis followed by
fermentation
2
which yields much less ATP per glucose molecule than aerobic respiration (as
discussed further in the hands-on activity "Alcoholic Fermentation in Yeast" (available at
[Link]
2
Some bacteria and archaea use a different process called anaerobic respiration in which nitrate or sulfate (instead
of O
2
) serve as electron acceptors at the end of the electron transport chain.
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II. Using ATP to Provide Energy for Biological Processes
Question 5 engages students in completing a simplified diagram to show one example of how
ATP is used for biological processes. For your information, the following figure shows how each
molecule of ATP is used in muscle contraction.
(Figure from Krogh, Biology a Guide to the Natural World)
Another example of coupled reactions in which the breakdown of ATP provides energy for
important biological processes is protein synthesis:
4 ATP ----> 4 ADP + 4 phosphate
energy
polypeptide with n amino acids ----> polypeptide with n +1 amino acids
Question 6 requires students to synthesize what they have learned about:
the role of cellular respiration in synthesizing ATP
how ATP is used to provide energy for biological processes.
This question also helps students to understand that cells are dynamic systems with constant
molecular activity. On average, each ATP molecule in our body is used and re-synthesized more
than 30 times per minute when we are at rest and more than 500 times per minute during
strenuous exercise.
With regard to the general principles about energy, another example of the inefficiency of energy
transformation is that only about 30% of the energy released by cellular respiration of a glucose
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molecule is captured in the ATP molecules produced and the rest of the energy is converted to
heat. To emphasize this principle, you may want to add heat to the chemical equations shown in
the Student Handout as illustrated by the following:
many ATP ---> many ADP + many phosphate
energy > heat
muscle relaxed ----> muscle contracted
With regard to question 7a, the mistake of claiming that cellular respiration produces or makes
energy is widespread even in publications that generally maintain high standards of accuracy.
The First Law of Thermodynamics states that energy can be changed from one type to another,
but energy is not created or destroyed. In accord with this principle, cellular respiration does not
make energy, but rather transfers energy from organic molecules like glucose to ATP, which
provides energy in a form that can be used for cellular processes. A simple revision to make the
sentence accurate would be to say that "Cellular respiration makes ATP which provides the
energy needed for biological processes."
Questions 4 and 7a provide the opportunity to reinforce student understanding that they need to
read critically and thoughtfully and not just assume that everything that appears on the web or in
textbooks is accurate. Of course, high school students do not have the background to judge
whether the statements in the Student Handout for this activity are more accurate than the
statements in their textbook or on the web, but they can evaluate whether statements are logically
consistent.
Additional Information and Activities
Additional background and activities are provided in "Cellular Respiration and
Photosynthesis Important Concepts, Common Misconceptions, and Learning Activities"
available at [Link]
Relevant follow-up activities include:
o "Food, Energy and Body Weight"
([Link]
o "Using Models to Understand Photosynthesis"
([Link]
