Glucose breakdown in certain mammalian and bacterial cells can occur by mechanisms other than classic glycolysis. In most of these, glucose 6-phosphate is oxidized to 6-phosphogluconate, which is then further metabolized by:

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The process described is part of the pentose phosphate pathway, where 6-phosphogluconate is decarboxylated to produce ribulose-5-phosphate, a keto-pentose, along with the release of carbon dioxide. This step is crucial for the generation of NADPH and ribose-5-phosphate, which are essential for biosynthetic reactions and nucleotide synthesis, respectively.

Glucose Breakdown in Certain Mammalian and Bacterial Cells Can Occur