What is the total net ATP produced per glucose molecule during aerobic respiration?

During aerobic respiration, one glucose molecule undergoes a series of metabolic pathways: glycolysis, the citric acid cycle (Krebs cycle), and oxidative phosphorylation (electron transport chain and chemiosmosis).

In glycolysis, which occurs in the cytoplasm, two molecules of ATP are produced directly, and two molecules of NADH are generated, which will later yield ATP through oxidative phosphorylation. This process converts one glucose into two pyruvate molecules and produces a net gain of 2 ATP.

Next, each pyruvate molecule is converted into acetyl-CoA before entering the citric acid cycle, where further ATP, NADH, and FADH2 are produced. For each turn of the cycle (and there are two turns for one glucose), one ATP, three NADH, and one FADH2 are produced. Therefore, from one glucose, the citric acid cycle yields a total of 2 ATP, 6 NADH, and 2 FADH2.

The NADH and FADH2 generated during both glycolysis and the citric acid cycle transport electrons to the electron transport chain, where their energy is used to drive the synthesis of ATP. Each NADH can produce approximately 2.5