Final answer:
The complete oxidation of acetyl-CoA to H2O via the citric acid cycle generates 12 ATPs per acetyl-CoA molecule. With two acetyl-CoA molecules derived per glucose molecule, this accounts for 24 ATPs. Additionally, prior steps before the citric acid cycle (glycolysis and conversion of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA) contribute another 14 ATP, leading to a total of 38 ATPs per glucose molecule fully oxidized to CO2 and H2O.
Step-by-step explanation:
The complete oxidation of acetyl coA through the citric acid cycle (also known as Krebs cycle or TCA cycle) and subsequent oxidative phosphorylation results in the formation of ATP. For each acetyl-CoA molecule entering the citric acid cycle, 10 molecules of ATP are produced. This includes 3 molecules from each NADH (of which there are 3 produced per cycle), 1 molecule from each FADH₂ (1 produced per cycle), and 1 molecule from GTP formed through substrate-level phosphorylation.
Breaking down the numbers further: 3 NADH yield 9 ATP (3 ATP each), 1 FADH₂ gives 2 ATP, and the GTP translates to 1 ATP. This sums up to 12 ATP per acetyl-CoA molecule that enters the cycle. Considering two acetyl-CoA molecules derived from the full oxidation of one molecule of glucose, we have a total of 24 ATP from the citric acid cycle.
If we also add the initiation step, where glucose is first converted to acetyl-CoA, we can calculate the overall ATP yield. Glycolysis yields 8 ATP, the conversion of 2 pyruvate molecules to acetyl-CoA yields another 6 ATP (3 ATP from each NADH produced), which leads to a total of 14 ATP before entering the citric acid cycle. Summing these up, we have a total of 38 ATP (38 ATP) per molecule of glucose oxidized to CO₂ and H₂O.