Final answer:
Cellular respiration is the biological process where energy from glucose is released into the cell and stored as ATP. This is essential for cells to perform work and is the reverse of photosynthesis.
Step-by-step explanation:
Cellular respiration is the process by which the energy of glucose is released in the cell. Specifically, during cellular respiration, the energy stored in glucose is transferred to ATP (adenosine triphosphate), which is the chemical energy the cell can utilize. This process is crucial for the functioning of living cells as it provides the necessary energy for cellular activities. The process of cellular respiration can be described as the opposite of photosynthesis.
It involves the breakdown of glucose in the presence of oxygen to produce carbon dioxide, water, and energy. The released energy during this breakdown is captured in the form of ATP, which is then used for various cellular processes. In summary, cellular respiration is a series of metabolic pathways that extract energy from the bonds in glucose and converts it into a form that is usable by all living things: ATP.