Wize University Biochemistry Textbook > Carbohydrate Metabolism
Pentose Phosphate Pathway
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Pentose Phosphate Pathway
NADPH is a major reducing agent for metabolic pathways.
The pentose phosphate pathway creates NADPH by oxidizing glucose 6-phosphate (G6P).
Net reaction: 3 G6P + 6 NADP+ --> 2 fructose-6-phosphate + glyceraldehyde phosphate + 6 NADPH + 3 CO2
The products fructose-6-phosphate and glyceraldehyde phosphate can feed into the glycolysis pathway
OR, if nucleotide levels are low, the pentose phosphate pathway can produce ribose-5-phosphate instead of the glycolysis intermediates.
Net reaction: G6P + 2 NADP+ ---> ribose-5-phosphate + CO2 + 2 NADPH