Glucose, pyruvate, and acetate metabolism by developing soybean seeds

Developing soybean cotyledons were incubated with glucose-¹⁴C,pyruvate-¹⁴C, and acetate-¹⁴C. Glucose was metabolized by boththe Embden-Meyerhof-Parnas pathway and the pentose phosphatepathway. Developing soybean cotyledons also have the capacityto synthesize sucrose since ¹⁴C was found in fructose and sucrosefrom glucose incubations. Complete analysis showed that thecarbons from glucose were directed into CO₂, lipid, and solids.Pyruvate was metabolized to a C-2 unit which is presumably acetylCoA. After conversion to the C-2 unit, the carbons of pyruvatewere metabolized in the same manner as acetate. Both pyruvateand acetate carbons were directed predominately into lipids. (Received January 6, 1976; )