Oxaloacetic Acid (OA)

Oxaloacetic acid is a crystalline organic compound with the chemical formula HO2CC(O)CH2CO2H. Oxaloacetic acid, in the form of its conjugate base oxaloacetate, is a metabolic intermediate in many processes that occur in animals. It takes part in the: gluconeogenesis, urea cycle, glyoxylate cycle, amino acid synthesis, fatty acid synthesis and citric acid cycle. The glyoxylate cycle is a variant of the citric acid cycle. It is an anabolic pathway occurring in plants and bacteria utilizing the enzymes; isocitrate lyase and malate synthase.Oxaloacetate forms in several ways in nature. A principal route is upon oxidation of L-malate, catalysed by malate dehydrogenase. Oxaloacetate is an intermediate of the citric acid cycle, where it reacts with Acetyl-CoA to form citrate, catalysed by citrate synthase. It is also involved in gluconeogenesis, urea cycle, glyoxylate cycle, amino acid synthesis, and fatty acid synthesis.