Gavin Morgan 11/19/2015 Chapter 7 2-Point Notes Cells oxidize organic compounds to drive metabolism: 1. First, enzymes break down the large molecules into smaller ones, a process called digestion. Then, other enzymes dismantle these fragments a bit at a time, harvesting energy from C?H and other chemical bonds at each stage. 2. Electrons lost are accompanied by protons, so that what is really lost is a hydrogen atom, not just an electron. Cellular respiration is the complete oxidation of glucose: 1. When the acceptor is oxygen, the process is called aerobic respiration.