What is the balanced chemical equation for cellular respiration?

If you were to expose cells that are undergoing aerobic respiration to a radioactive oxygen isotope in the form of O₂, which of the following molecules would you expect to be radiolabeled?

a. Pyruvate

b. Water

c. NADH

d. CO₂

Cellular respiration involves ________.

a. The aerobic metabolism of sugars in the mitochondria by a process called glycolysis.

b. An electron transport chain that releases carbon dioxide.

c. The synthesis of ATP, which is driven by the rushing of protons through an ATP synthase.

d. Electron carriers that bring electrons to the citric acid cycle; e. the production of water during the citric acid cycle.

The text claims that the evolution of an oxygen-rich atmosphere paved the way for increasingly efficient cellular respiration and higher growth rates in organisms. Explain.