Final answer:
For every glycerol molecule entering glycolysis, the biochemical pathway results in the formation of 2 ATP and 1 NADH, as glycerol enters the pathway after the initial ATP consumption phase but still undergoes conversion to pyruvate, liberating these energy molecules.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question pertains to the biochemical pathway of glycolysis where a glycerol molecule, when utilized in the glycolytic pathway, produces a certain number of ATP and NADH molecules. In glycolysis, for each molecule of glucose, which is a 6-carbon molecule, it is split into two 3-carbon pyruvate molecules. This results in a net gain of 2 ATP and 2 NADH molecules, as 4 ATPs are produced and 2 ATPs are consumed during the early stages of glycolysis. However, glycerol, which is a 3-carbon molecule, bypasses the ATP consumption phase of glycolysis and thus the number of ATP and NADH yielded from glycerol entering glycolysis would be directly proportional to its entry point in the pathway.
Given that glycerol would be converted into an intermediate that would then enter the glycolytic pathway, it would result in the production of less than the full amount generated by a glucose molecule entering the pathway. As such, for every glycerol that enters glycolysis, the number of ATP and NADH formed would be fewer than that formed from a molecule of glucose. Hence, the direct entry of glycerol into the glycolytic pathway leading to the production of pyruvate would result in the formation of 1 ATP and 1 NADH for each glycerol molecule, making the correct answer (a) 2 ATP, 1 NADH.