The unique features of glycolytic pathways in Archaea.
An early divergence in evolution has resulted in two prokaryotic domains, the Bacteria and the Archaea. Whereas the central metabolic routes of bacteria and eukaryotes are generally well-conserved, variant pathways have developed in Archaea involving several novel enzymes with a distinct control. A spectacular example of convergent evolution concerns the glucose-degrading pathways of saccharolytic archaea. The identification, characterization and comparison of the glycolytic enzymes of a variety of phylogenetic lineages have revealed a mosaic of canonical and novel enzymes in the archaeal variants of the Embden-Meyerhof and the Entner-Doudoroff pathways. By means of integrating results from biochemical and genetic studies with recently obtained comparative and functional genomics data, the structure and function of the archaeal glycolytic routes, the participating enzymes and their regulation are re-evaluated.
Verhees
Corné H
CH
Laboratory of Microbiology, Department of Agrotechnology and Food Sciences, Wageningen University, Hesselink van Suchtelenweg 4, 6703 CT Wageningen, The Netherlands.
Kengen
Servé W M
SW
Tuininga
Judith E
JE
Schut
Gerrit J
GJ
Adams
Michael W W
MW
De Vos
Willem M
WM
Van Der Oost
John
J
D000244:Adenosine Diphosphate / Q000378:metabolism; D001105:Archaea / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D006019:Glycolysis; D010770:Phosphotransferases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D010802:Phylogeny; D013045:Species Specificity
D000244:Adenosine Diphosphate; D010770:Phosphotransferases; D005947:Glucose