Pantoic acid is the

alpha hydroxy acid α-Hydroxy acids, or alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs), are a class of chemical compounds that consist of a carboxylic acid with a hydroxyl group substituent on the adjacent (alpha) carbon. Prominent examples are glycolic acid, lactic acid, mandelic aci ...

with the formula HOCH₂C(CH₃)₂CH(OH)CO₂H. The compound is almost always encountered in a biological context, as an aqueous solution of its conjugate base pantoate HOCH₂C(CH₃)₂CH(OH)CO₂-. The

amide In organic chemistry, an amide, also known as an organic amide or a carboxamide, is a compound with the general formula , where R, R', and R″ represent organic groups or hydrogen atoms. The amide group is called a peptide bond when it is ...

of pantoic acid with β-alanine is

pantothenic acid Pantothenic acid, also called vitamin B5 is a water-soluble B vitamin and therefore an essential nutrient. All animals require pantothenic acid in order to synthesize coenzyme A (CoA) – essential for fatty acid metabolism – as well as to, i ...

(vitamin B₅), a component of

coenzyme A Coenzyme A (CoA, SHCoA, CoASH) is a coenzyme, notable for its role in the synthesis and oxidation of fatty acids, and the oxidation of pyruvate in the citric acid cycle. All genomes sequenced to date encode enzymes that use coenzyme A as a subs ...

Biosynthesis

Its biosynthesis proceeds from

ketoisovalerate α-Ketoisovaleric acid is an organic compound with the formula (CH3)2CHC(O)CO2H. It is a ketoacid. With a melting point just above room temperature, it is usually an oil or semi-solid. The compound is colorless. It is a metabolite of valine an ...

hydroxymethylation Hydroxymethylation is a chemical reaction that installs the CH2OH group. The transformation can be implemented in many ways and applies to both industrial and biochemical processes. Hydroxymethylation with formaldehyde A common method for hydroxym ...

: :(CH₃)₂CHC(O)CO₂⁻ + CH₂O → HOCH₂(CH₃)₂CC(O)CO₂⁻ This conversion is catalyzed by ketopantoate hydroxymethyltransferase, which gives

ketopantoate Ketopantoic acid is the organic compound with the formula HOCH2(CH3)2CC(O)CO2H. At physiological conditions, ketopantoic acid exists as its conjugate base, ketopantoate (HOCH2(CH3)2CC(O)CO2−). Biosynthetic context Its biosynthesis proceeds from ...

. Ketopantoate is reduced by ketopantoate reductase to pantoate, using NADH as the hydride source. The amide derived from pantoic acid and GABA is the pharmaceutical drug

hopantenic acid Hopantenic acid (homopantothenic acid), also known as N-pantoyl-GABA, is a central nervous system depressant. Formulated as the calcium salt, it is used as a pharmaceutical drug in the Russian Federation for a variety of neurological, psychologic ...

References

External links

* Alpha hydroxy acids Diols {{organic-compound-stub