alanine-glucose cycle

al·a·nine-glu·cose cycle

(al'ă-nēn-glū'kōs sī'kĕl) Alanine, synthesized in muscle from glucose-derived pyruvate, travels from the blood to the liver, which converts the alanine to glucose and urea. The liver releases glucose back into the blood to transport to muscle as an energy substrate, thereby completing the cycle.