Pyruvic Acid (PA)

Pyruvic acid (CH3COCOOH) is an organic acid, a ketone, as well as the simplest of the alpha-keto acids. Pyruvic acid can be made from glucose through glycolysis, converted back to carbohydrates via gluconeogenesis, or to fatty acids through acetyl-CoA. It can also be used to construct the amino acid alanine and be converted into ethanol. Pyruvic acid supplies energy to living cells through the citric acid cycle when oxygen is presen, and alternatively ferments to produce lactic acid when oxygen is lacking . Pyruvate is an important chemical compound in biochemistry. It is the output of the anaerobic metabolism of glucose known as glycolysis. One molecule of glucose breaks down into two molecules of pyruvate, which are then used to provide further energy, in one of two ways. Pyruvate is converted into acetyl-coenzyme A, which is the main input for a series of reactions known as the Krebs cycle.