METABOLISM

You are what you eat - literally.

Metabolic pathways describe the building or breakdown of biological macromolecules, which either consume or release energy in the form of ATP.

The main metabolic pathways on the MCAT are the glucose pathways. These include glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation. Side pathways include the metabolism of glycogen, lipids, proteins, and nucleotides.

These pathways are highly regulated by allosteric and hormonal control and tied to thermodynamic concepts like redox, catalysis, and bioenergetics.