The
Mevalonate pathway, also known as the
Isoprenoid pathway or
HMG-CoA reductase pathway is an essential
metabolic pathway present in
eukaryotes,
archaea, and some
bacteria. The pathway produces two five-carbon building blocks called
isopentenyl pyrophosphate (IPP) and
dimethylallyl pyrophosphate (DMAPP), which are used to make
isoprenoids, a diverse class of over 30,000 biomolecules such as
cholesterol,
heme,
vitamin K,
coenzyme Q10, and all
steroid hormones.