For many years it has been apparent from estimates of the anion gap and the strong ion gap that anions of unknown identity can be generated in sepsis and shock states. Evidence is emerging that at least some of these are intermediates of the citric acid cycle. The exact source of this disturbance remains unclear, because a great many metabolic blocks and bottlenecks can disturb the anaplerotic and cataplerotic pathways that enter and leave the cycle. These mechanisms require clarification with the use of tools such as gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.