Final answer:
No, it's not more energy-efficient to polymerize glucose into glycogen before using it in cellular respiration because the initial ATP consumption for glycogen synthesis offsets the ATP saved from bypassing the first step of glycolysis during glycogenolysis.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question at hand explores whether it is more energy efficient for a cell to polymerize glucose into glycogen before using it in cellular respiration, particularly focusing on the release of glucose from glycogen in the form of glucose 6-phosphate in the context of glycolysis. When glucose is liberated from glycogen as glucose 6-phosphate, it bypasses the first ATP-consuming step of glycolysis.
The initial phosphorylation step of glycolysis involves the conversion of glucose to glucose-6-phosphate by hexokinase using one ATP molecule. Later, in glycogenolysis, glucose-1-phosphate (G-1-P) converted from glycogen is changed to glucose-6-phosphate (G-6-P) without the need for another ATP, thus saving energy for the cell. However, while this bypasses the need for one molecule of ATP, we must factor in the ATP consumed in the original synthesis of glycogen, meaning that the energy to store glucose in this manner has already been invested.
In summary, considering the full cycle of energy storage and usage, it is not more energy efficient to polymerize glucose for the purpose of bypassing one step of glycolysis because the initial investment of energy to form glycogen (polymerization) balances out the ATP saved during glycogenolysis (depolymerization). Therefore, the final answer in two line explanation in 300 words is: No, because ATP was consumed in the initial production of the glycogen molecule, meaning that the energy saved during glycogenolysis is offset by the energy previously invested into glycogen synthesis.