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Pyruvate decarboxylation
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<p>Pyruvate decarboxylation or pyruvate oxidation, also known as the link reaction (or oxidative decarboxylation of pyruvate), is the conversion of <a href="/facts/Pyruvate/qJTgl4J9">pyruvate</a> into <a href="/facts/Acetyl-CoA/XyxFfC84">acetyl-CoA</a> by the enzyme complex <a href="/facts/Pyruvate_dehydrogenase_complex/6Cmv35f6">pyruvate dehydrogenase complex</a>. </p><p>The reaction may be simplified as: </p> Pyruvate + NAD+ + CoA → Acetyl-CoA + NADH + CO2 <p>Pyruvate oxidation is the step that connects <a href="/facts/Glycolysis/a5ApxLoG">glycolysis</a> and the <a href="/facts/Krebs_cycle/EGJL9NXP">Krebs cycle</a>. In glycolysis, a single <a href="/facts/Glucose/oUSkoLCD">glucose</a> molecule (6 carbons) is split into 2 pyruvates (3 carbons each). Because of this, the <a href="/facts/Link_reaction/VpJt0RLA">link reaction</a> occurs twice for each glucose molecule to produce a total of 2 acetyl-CoA molecules, which can then enter the Krebs cycle. </p><p>Energy-generating <a href="/facts/Ion/3bePpDna">ions</a> and <a href="/facts/Molecule/N9ljSfFq">molecules</a>, such as <a href="/facts/Amino_acid/WDxYwBny">amino acids</a> and <a href="/facts/Carbohydrate/Geuuzxsf">carbohydrates</a>, enter the Krebs cycle as acetyl coenzyme A and oxidize in the cycle. The pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDC) catalyzes the <a href="/facts/Decarboxylation/Uugc18fz">decarboxylation</a> of pyruvate, resulting in the synthesis of acetyl-CoA, <a href="/facts/Carbon_dioxide/xGzpppEp">CO2</a>, and <a href="/facts/Nicotinamide_adenine_dinucleotide/BHdLW925">NADH</a>. In <a href="/facts/Eukaryote/SkwyPLMA">eukaryotes</a>, this enzyme complex regulates <a href="/facts/Pyruvic_acid/qJTgl4J9">pyruvate metabolism</a>, and ensures <a href="/facts/Homeostasis/rloTGAHa">homeostasis</a> of glucose during absorptive and post-absorptive state metabolism. As the Krebs cycle occurs in the <a href="/facts/Mitochondrial_matrix/tgC0ENLv">mitochondrial matrix</a>, the pyruvate generated during <a href="/facts/Glycolysis/a5ApxLoG">glycolysis</a> in the <a href="/facts/Cytosol/VyXgygWm">cytosol</a> is transported across the <a href="/facts/Inner_mitochondrial_membrane/IJIE4o0h">inner mitochondrial membrane</a> by a <a href="/facts/Mitochondrial_pyruvate_carrier_2/RD1PLrS2">pyruvate carrier</a> under aerobic conditions. </p>