Which molecule is the end product of glycolysis?

During glycolysis, glucose is metabolized through a series of enzymatic reactions to produce energy in the form of ATP and NADH. The process converts one molecule of glucose, which is a six-carbon sugar, into two molecules of pyruvate, a three-carbon compound. This transformation represents the final step of glycolysis, where all the energy-carrying molecules and metabolic intermediates come together to yield pyruvate.

Pyruvate serves as a crucial intermediate in cellular respiration. From this point, pyruvate can either enter the mitochondria to undergo further oxidation in the Krebs cycle (if oxygen is available) or be converted to lactate in anaerobic conditions. Understanding this process highlights the importance of pyruvate as the key end product that links glycolysis with subsequent metabolic pathways, reflecting its role as a central metabolite in cellular metabolism.