Antiglycolytic agents prevent the decrease of which metabolite?

• A. Glucose
• B. Lactate
• C. Ethanol
• D. Pyruvate

Answer: (A)

Antiglycolytic agents stop glycolysis in the blood sample, so glucose isn’t consumed by the cells after collection. They do this by inhibiting a key enzyme in glycolysis (fluoride inhibits enolase), effectively blocking the pathway that converts glucose into downstream products like pyruvate and lactate. Because glycolysis is halted, the level of glucose remains stable instead of decreasing over time. Ethanol isn’t involved in this mechanism, and while lactate and pyruvate are products of glycolysis, their levels depend on the rate of glycolysis; the point of these agents is to prevent the drop in glucose.