pyruvic acid

2-Oxopropanoic acid; α-ketopropionic acid; acetylformic acid; pyroacemic acid; the simplest α-keto acid; an intermediate compound in the metabolism of carbohydrate; in thiamin deficiency, its oxidation is retarded and it accumulates in the tissues, especially in nervous structures. The enol form, enol p., when phosphorylated, plays an important metabolic role. See phosphoenolp..

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py·ru·vic acid pī-.rü-vik- n a 3-carbon acid C₃H₄O₃ that is an intermediate in carbohydrate metabolism and can be formed either from glucose after phosphorylation or from glycogen by glycolysis

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a compound, derived from carbohydrates, that may be oxidized via a complex series of reactions in the Krebs cycle to yield carbon dioxide and energy in the form of ATP.

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py·ru·vic ac·id (pi-rooґvik) α-ketopropionic acid, CH₃COCOOH, the end product of the Embden-Meyerhof pathway of glucose metabolism, also produced by the catabolism of several amino acids. Pyruvate can be converted to acetyl coenzyme A, which can enter the tricarboxylic acid cycle for aerobic production of energy or be used for fatty acid synthesis. Energy can be obtained anaerobically by conversion of pyruvate to lactate (which occurs in mammalian muscle tissue) or to ethanol, small organic acids, and many other compounds (microbial fermentations). Pyruvate can also be converted to oxaloacetate, the first step in gluconeogenesis.