Final answer:
The total number of ATP equivalents produced when one molecule of pyruvate is completely oxidized to CO2 is 15, including the production of NADH during its conversion to acetyl-CoA and subsequent ATP yield in the citric acid cycle.
Step-by-step explanation:
Total ATP Produced During Pyruvate Oxidation
If one molecule of pyruvate is completely oxidized to CO2, the total number of ATP equivalents produced, using oxygen as the terminal electron acceptor, includes stages beyond glycolysis.
- Conversion of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA produces 1 NADH, which is equivalent to 3 ATPs after being oxidized in the ETC.
- Each turn of the citric acid cycle yields 3 NADH, 1 FADH2, and 1 GTP (which can be considered equivalent to ATP), per acetyl-CoA. This equates to 3(3 ATP for NADH) + 2 ATP (for FADH2) + 1 ATP (for GTP) = 12 ATP per acetyl-CoA.
Summing these up, we have (3 ATP from NADH during conversion to acetyl-CoA) + (12 ATP per cycle in the citric acid cycle) = 15 ATP equivalents in total for the complete oxidation of one molecule of pyruvate.