The Production of Lactic Acid through an Anaerobic Process.Lactic acid is produced from pyruvate by an anaerobic process called

The Production of Lactic Acid through an Anaerobic Process

Lactic acid is a widely used organic compound, primarily produced through an anaerobic process, for various applications such as food preservatives and flavoring agents (Vijayaraghavan, 2019). This organic compound is produced from pyruvate, a 3-carbon molecule, by the fermentation process of microorganisms like bacteria and yeast (Vijayaraghavan, 2019). In this process, the pyruvate is converted into lactic acid by the enzyme lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in the absence of oxygen (Vijayaraghavan, 2019). It is an energy-producing metabolic pathway, which is the major energy source for skeletal muscles during intense exercise (Vijayaraghavan, 2019). The anaerobic production of lactic acid is a complex process. In the first step, pyruvate is converted into lactate by the enzyme LDH. This reaction is accompanied by the reduction of NAD+ to NADH+H+ (Vijayaraghavan, 2019). The NADH+H+ is then oxidized to NAD+ by the action of lactic acid oxidase, which results in the… Cont…