Final answer:
Oxidative phosphorylation is the correct answer, describing the part of cellular respiration where the flow of electrons from reduced coenzymes through the electron transport chain results in ATP synthesis.
Step-by-step explanation:
Oxidative phosphorylation is the oxidation-driven flow of electrons, through or within a membrane, from reduced coenzymes to an electron acceptor. This process is crucial in the metabolic pathway of cellular respiration, particularly during the electron transport chain, and is usually accompanied by the generation of ATP (adenosine triphosphate).
The choices provided to you are steps in cellular metabolism: a. Glycolysis produces pyruvate and a small amount of ATP, b. Electron transport involves the passage of electrons through a series of proteins in the inner mitochondrial membrane, c. Oxidative phosphorylation is the stage where most ATP is synthesized when the electrons are passed to oxygen, and d. Citric acid cycle (also known as Krebs cycle) processes acetyl-CoA to produce NADH and FADH2 which then enter the electron transport chain.
Oxidative phosphorylation is the correct answer to the student's question since it specifically describes the process wherein the transfer of electrons from NADH and FADH2, through the electron transport chain, leads to ATP synthesis.