Aerobic respiration produces how many times as much ATP as glycolysis?

Aerobic respiration is an efficient process that takes place in the presence of oxygen, generating a significantly larger amount of ATP compared to glycolysis, which is the initial step in the breakdown of glucose and occurs in the cytoplasm. Glycolysis itself yields a net gain of 2 ATP molecules from one glucose molecule.

When glucose undergoes aerobic respiration, which includes glycolysis, the citric acid cycle (Krebs cycle), and oxidative phosphorylation (electron transport chain), the total ATP yield can reach approximately 30 to 32 ATP molecules from one glucose molecule. This means that compared to the 2 ATP produced during glycolysis alone, aerobic respiration can produce about 15 times more ATP.

To summarize, aerobic respiration significantly expands the ATP yield stemming from the glucose breakdown compared to the initial stage of glycolysis, ultimately supporting the conclusion that aerobic respiration produces around 15 times as much ATP as glycolysis does.