TCA Cycle

Name:
TCA Cycle
Detailed information:
(tricarboxylic acid cycle; Krebs cycle; citric acid cycle). A series of enzymatic reactions occurring in living cells of aerobic organisms, the net result of which is the conversion of pyruvic acid, formed by anaerobic metabolism of carbohydrates, into carbon dioxide and water. The metabolic intermediates are degraded by a combination of decarboxylation and dehydrogenation. It is the major terminal pathway of oxidation in animal, bacterial, and plant cells. Recent research indicates that the TCA cycle may have predated life on earth and may have provided the pathway for formation of amino acids.