The long and short of it - polyphosphate, PPK and bacterial survival.
Inorganic polyphosphate (poly P) is present in all species tested to date, from each of the three kingdoms of life. Studied mainly in prokaryotes, poly P and its associated enzymes are important in diverse basic metabolism, in at least some structural functions and, notably, in stress responses. These numerous and unrelated roles for poly P are probably the consequence of its presence in life-forms from early in evolution. The genomes of many bacterial species, including pathogens, encode a homologue of a major poly P synthetic enzyme, poly P kinase 1 (PPK1). Loss of PPK1 results in reduced poly P levels, and deletion of the ppk1 gene in pathogens also results in a loss of virulence towards protozoa and animals. Thus far, no PPK1 homologue has been identified in higher-order eukaryotes and, therefore, PPK1 exhibits potential as a novel target for chemotherapy.
Brown
Michael R W
MR
Research Institute in Healthcare Science, Department of Pharmacy, University of Wolverhampton, Wulfruna Street, Wolverhampton, WV1 1SB, UK. michael.brown@wlv.ac.uk
Kornberg
Arthur
A
D000818:Animals; D001419:Bacteria / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D017856:Phosphotransferases (Phosphate Group Acceptor) / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D011122:Polyphosphates / Q000378:metabolism*
D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D011122:Polyphosphates; D017856:Phosphotransferases (Phosphate Group Acceptor); C022424:polyphosphate kinase