Mitochondria are bounded by a double membrane. Each of these membranes is a phospholipid bilayer with embedded proteins.

The outermost membrane is smooth while the inner membrane has many folds. These folds are called cristae. The folds enhance the "productivity" of cellular respiration by increasing the available surface area. The double membranes divide the mitochondrion into two distinct parts: the intermembrane space and the mitochondrial matrix. The intermembrane space is the narrow part between the two membranes while the mitochondrial matrix is the part enclosed by the innermost membrane. Several of the steps in cellular respiration occur in the matrix due to its high concentration of enzymes. Mitochondria are semi-autonomous in that they are only partially dependent on the cell to replicate and grow. They have their own DNA, ribosomes and can make their own proteins. Similar to bacteria, mitochondria have circular DNA and replicate by a reproductive process called fission.

How Cell Mitochondria Convert Food into Useable Energy

Food is the fuel for the body. The mitochondria are the converters; they convert the fuel into useable energy. When food is digested, or broken down into its smallest molecules and nutrients, and air is taken in, or inspired, the smallest molecules and nutrients cross into the bloodstream. These molecules and nutrients include things such as glucose (a sugar molecule derived from carbohydrates) and oxygen. Use food only as a fuel. Otherwise, you will consume more fuel than is necessary to make the machine called your body function. And you know what happens to the excess fuel? It gets stored for later (the machine stays prepared for times of low fuel intake) as fat. Just as fire burns oxygen and gives off carbon dioxide and water, mitochondria act like furnaces when they convert glucose into adenosine triphosphate (ATP): They burn (use) oxygen and give off carbon dioxide and water. Because the process uses oxygen, it is said to be aerobic (as in aerobic exercise). This chemical process of respiration occurs in every cell, so it is called aerobic cellular respiration. The steps that occur in this process are described by the Krebs cycle (also called the tricarboxylic acid [TCA] cycle). The Krebs cycle is a cornerstone to understanding how cells function. Aerobic cellular respiration can be diagrammed like this, with each step breaking down the products in the step preceding it: 1. Food (ingested) + Air (inhaled) 2. Carbohydrate + Oxygen and Nitrogen

3. Glucose + Oxygen (final products of digestion and inhalation) 4. ATP (energy) + Carbon Dioxide (exhaled) + Water (exhaled and excreted) Do not confuse respiration with breathing. Breathing is just a part of respiration. Breathing actually is the act of inspiring and expiring; respiration is the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between cells and the atmosphere. So, people respire, but it happens at the cellular level.