Pyruvate oxidation occurs in the mitochondrial matrix of eukaryotic cells. After glycolysis produces pyruvate in the cytoplasm, pyruvate is transported across the mitochondrial membranes into the matrix, where it undergoes oxidation
. In prokaryotes, which lack mitochondria, pyruvate oxidation takes place in the cytoplasm
. Thus, in eukaryotes, the mitochondrial matrix is the specific site of pyruvate oxidation, linking glycolysis in the cytoplasm to the citric acid cycle inside mitochondria
