title: Glucosamine-6-phosphate synthase--the multi-facets enzyme.
abstract: L-Glutamine: D-fructose-6-phosphate amidotransferase, known under trivial name of glucosamine-6-phosphate synthase, as the only member of the amidotransferase subfamily of enzymes, does not display any ammonia-dependent activity. This enzyme, catalysing the first committed step in a pathway leading to the eventual formation of uridine 5'-diphospho-N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (UDP-GlcNAc), is an important point of metabolic control in biosynthesis of amino sugar-containing macromolecules. The molecular mechanism of reaction catalysed by GlcN-6-P synthase is complex and involves both amino transfer and sugar isomerisation. Substantial alterations to the enzyme structure and properties have been detected in different neoplastic tissues. GlcN-6-P synthase is inflicted in phenomenon of hexosamine-induced insulin resistance in diabetes. Finally, this enzyme has been proposed as a promising target in antifungal chemotherapy. Most of these issues, especially their molecular aspects, have been extensively studied in recent years. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the present knowledge on this multi-facets enzyme.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biochemistry, Technical University of Gdańsk, ul. Narutowicza 11/12, 80-952 Gdańsk, Poland. milewski@altis.chem.pg.gda.pl
authors.forename: Sławomir
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Milewski
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001419:Bacteria / Q000201:enzymology; D002384:Catalysis; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000201:enzymology; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D005945:Glutamine-Fructose-6-Phosphate Transaminase (Isomerizing) / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000201:enzymology; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D015394:Molecular Structure; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014456:Ulcer / Q000201:enzymology
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D005945:Glutamine-Fructose-6-Phosphate Transaminase (Isomerizing); D005947:Glucose