What are some general uses (more than one) of glycolysis?

Do you mean inside the body or outside the body? Or both?


Glycolysis:
A process that stops short of complete depolymerization, but breaks
long polymer chains into short-chain oligomers that are repolymerized
into virgin polymer. (Modern Plastics Encyclopedia 1995).

INSIDE THE BODY:

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from Metabolism - Fermentation
©2000 Timothy Paustian, University of Wisconsin-Madison (course notes)
http://www.bact.wisc.edu/MicrotextBook/Metabolism/Fermentation.html

"Glycolysis - Embden-Meyerhoff-Parnas pathway (EMP)
EMP is the most commonly used series of reactions for oxidizing
glucose to pyruvate and many bacteria, animals and plants employ this
pathway in their catabolism. EMP is so ubiquitous that is worthwhile
to use it as an example of a typical fermentation. It is an essential
part of many organisms catabolism, even yours! However, it is not the
only method for the fermentation of glucose. Remember that bacteria
are remarkably creative and other pathways are present in different
species."

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And from Blackwell Science:
Introduction to Biology Unit One: Unit I: From Atoms to Living Cells
http://www.blackwellscience.com/11thhour/wilson/about/u1ch7.html

"The intermediates in glycolysis and Krebs cycle also are used by the
cell as general carbon skeletons that are used for the synthesis of
other organic compounds. In this way the catabolic (break-down)
pathways of glycolysis and Krebs cycle are intertwined with the
anabolic (building) pathways in living cells, as was mentioned in the
case of fat production, above. Through such anabolic pathways leading
from the intermediates in cell respiration, humans can make more than
half of the 20 amino acids used to make proteins."

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OUTSIDE THE BODY

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Glycolysis is used in plastic recycling: see the Indian Plastic Portal
on

http://www.indianplasticportal.com/plastic-resources/glossary-f.html#g

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DKR, a German company, goes into more detail on their website:

http://www.dkr.de/en/technik/232.htm

"The polyester polyols forming during glycolysis are primarily used
for the production of foamed insulating materials (rigid PUR and PIR
foam). However, they can also be used to produce flexible foam,
adhesives, coatings or casting resins. There is already a market for
these products."

"Glycolysis is the sequence of reactions that converts glucose into
pyruvate with the concomitant production of a relatively small amount
of ATP (celluar energy) . Glycolysis can be carried out anerobically
(in the absence of oxygen) and is thus an especially important pathway
for organisms that can ferment sugars. For example, glycolysis is the
pathway utilized by yeast to produce the alcohol found in beer.
Glycolysis also serves as a source of raw materials for the synthesis
of other compounds. For example, 3 phosphoglycerate can be converted
into serine, while pyruvate can be aerobically degraded by the Krebs
or TCA cycle to produce much larger amounts of ATP"

http://biotech.icmb.utexas.edu/glycolysis/glycohome.html

this means it can be used to produce the following: ethanol, citric
acid and fumaric acid (what jello is made of)