数据之源，洞见之始

Pyruvate

Pyruvic acid or pyruvate is a simple alpha-keto acid. It is a three-carbon molecule containing a carboxylic acid group and a ketone functional group. Pyruvate is the simplest alpha-keto acid and according to official nomenclature by IUPAC, it is called alpha-keto propanoic acid. Like other keto acids, pyruvic acid can tautomerize from its ketone form to its enol form, containing a double bond and an alcohol. Pyruvate is found in all living organisms ranging from bacteria to plants to humans. It is intermediate compound in the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Pyruvate is a key intermediate in several metabolic pathways throughout the cell. In particular, pyruvic acid can be made from glucose through glycolysis, converted back to carbohydrates (such as glucose) via gluconeogenesis, or to fatty acids through a reaction with acetyl-CoA. Pyruvic acid supplies energy to cells through the citric acid cycle (TCA or Krebs cycle) when oxygen is present (aerobic respiration), and alternatively ferments to produce lactate when oxygen is lacking (lactic acid). In glycolysis, phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) is converted to pyruvate by pyruvate kinase. This reaction is strongly exergonic and irreversible. In gluconeogenesis, it takes two enzymes, pyruvate carboxylase and PEP carboxykinase, to catalyze the reverse transformation of pyruvate to PEP. Pyruvic acid is also a metabolite of Corynebacterium (PMID: 27872963).