Discussion on Phosphate Group and Nucleoside Triphosphate Involved Enzymatic Conversions and Their Mechanisms Based on Phosphate Ester Chemistry
WANG Zhipeng A1,2,3*, JIANG Zhen-Xiong4,5,6, Maggie Chen1,7, ZHANG Xuan8, MA Xin-Yu2, CHE Zi-Liang9,10
1. Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital; Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; 2. Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77840, USA; 3. Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; 4. Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77840, USA; 5. Computational Biology and Bioinformatics program, Duke Center for Genomics and Computational Biology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27705, USA; 6. Department of Microbiology, Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056, USA; 7. Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; 8. School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; 9. Department of Mathematics, Harvard University, MA 02138, USA; 10. Citadel Securities, LLC, 131 South Dearborn St. Chicago Illinois 60603, USA
Abstract As an essential chemical element in all life forms, phosphorus plays a nonnegligible role in a series of processes including energy metabolism, micro- and macromolecular structural modification, and the central dogma. While relevant mechanisms and regulations of enzymatic reactions are often mentioned in biochemistry curricula, a systemic analysis and discussion still remains elusive. By looking at the fundamental structures and reactions of organophosphate and phosphoric anhydride, here we elucidate the mechanisms of relevant regulatory enzymes in cells and aim to systematically clarify in vivo transformation of adenosine triphosphate, the most characteristic and important species of phosphoric anhydride. As a summary of biological processes of phosphorus, this manuscript not only serves as an exploration of new pedagogical models in chemistry and life sciences, but also expects to inspire students in their research design.
WANG Zhipeng A, JIANG Zhen-Xiong, Maggie Chen, ZHANG Xuan, MA Xin-Yu, CHE Zi-Liang. Discussion on Phosphate Group and Nucleoside Triphosphate Involved Enzymatic Conversions and Their Mechanisms Based on Phosphate Ester Chemistry[J]. Chinese Journal of Chemical Education, 2023, 44(8): 19-29.
