Uronic acid pathway is an alternative oxidative pathway for glucosebut, like HMPit does not lead to ATP generation.

In liver, the uronic acid pathway catalyzes the conversion of glucose to glucuronic acid, ascorbic acid, and pentoses. Glucose 6-phosphate is isomerized to glucose 1-phosphate by phosphoglucomutase Glucose 1-phosphate then reacts with uridine triphosphate (UTP) to form uridine diphosphate glucose (UDPGlc) in a reaction catalyzed by UDPGlc pyrophosphorylase, as occurs in glycogen synthesis. UDPGlc is oxidized at carbon 6 by NAD-dependent UDPGlc dehydrogenase in a two-step reaction to yield UDP-glucuronate. UDP-glucuronate is the active form of glucuronate for reactions involving incorporation of glucuronic acid into proteoglycans or for reactions in which substrates such as steroid hormones, bilirubin, and a number of drugs are conjugated with glucuronate for excretion in urine or bile. Functions of glucuronate residue formed: 1. To detoxify foreign compounds or drugs During detoxification, the glucuronate residues are covalently attached to the foreign substances. The polarity of glucuronate imparts strong polarity to the covalently attached foreign substance making their renal excretion possible. Bilirubin and steroid hormones are also rendered polar in this manner for excretion. 2. To synthesize acid mucopolysaccharides Mucopolysaccharides hyaluronic acid and heparin contain glucuronic acid as an essential component. Glucuronate is reduced to L-gulonate in an NADPH-dependent reaction; L-gulonate is the direct precursor of ascorbate in those animals capable of synthesizing this vitamin. In humans and other primates as well as guinea pigs, ascorbic acid cannot be synthesized because of the absence of L-gulonolactone oxidase. D-glucuronate is first reduced to L-gulonate by glucuronate reductase. L-gulonate loses water molecule to form L-gulonolactone catalysed by an aldonolactonase (SMP30 or regucalcin in mice). Removal of a pair of hydrogen atoms from L-gulonolactone by enzyme gulonolactone oxidase yields ascorbic acid.

Excess glucuronate is converted to xylulose 5-phosphate which enters pentose phosphate pathway.

 Disorder Essential pentosuria Appearance of L-xylulose in urine Absence of enzyme, L-xylulose reductase, necessary to reduce xylulose to xylitol Parenteral administration of xylitol leads to oxalosis, involving calcium oxalate depositions in brain and kidney