Nucleotides are organic molecules composed of a nitrogenous base, a pentose sugar and a phosphate. They serve as monomeric units of the nucleic acid polymers – deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA), both of which are essential biomolecules within all life-forms on Earth. Nucleotides are obtained in the diet and are also synthesized from common nutrients by the liver.
In biochemistry, a kinase is an enzyme that catalyzes the transfer of phosphate groups from high-energy, phosphate-donating molecules to specific substrates. This process is known as phosphorylation, where the high-energy ATP molecule donates a phosphate group to the substrate molecule. This transesterification produces a phosphorylated substrate and ADP. Conversely, it is referred to as dephosphorylation when the phosphorylated substrate donates a phosphate group and ADP gains a phosphate group. These two processes, phosphorylation and dephosphorylation, occur four times during glycolysis.
Thymine is one of the four nucleobases in the nucleic acid of DNA that are represented by the letters G–C–A–T. The others are adenine, guanine, and cytosine. Thymine is also known as 5-methyluracil, a pyrimidine nucleobase. In RNA, thymine is replaced by the nucleobase uracil. Thymine was first isolated in 1893 by Albrecht Kossel and Albert Neumann from calf thymus glands, hence its name.
Nucleosides are glycosylamines that can be thought of as nucleotides without a phosphate group. A nucleoside consists simply of a nucleobase and a five-carbon sugar whereas a nucleotide is composed of a nucleobase, a five-carbon sugar, and one or more phosphate groups. In a nucleoside, the anomeric carbon is linked through a glycosidic bond to the N9 of a purine or the N1 of a pyrimidine. Nucleotides are the molecular building blocks of DNA and RNA.
Thymidine, also known as deoxythymidine, deoxyribosylthymine, or thymine deoxyriboside, is a pyrimidine deoxynucleoside. Deoxythymidine is the DNA nucleoside T, which pairs with deoxyadenosine (A) in double-stranded DNA. In cell biology it is used to synchronize the cells in G1/early S phase. The prefix deoxy- is often left out since there are no precursors of thymine nucleotides involved in RNA synthesis.
A biomolecule or biological molecule is a loosely used term for molecules present in organisms that are essential to one or more typically biological processes, such as cell division, morphogenesis, or development. Biomolecules include large macromolecules such as proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, and nucleic acids, as well as small molecules such as primary metabolites, secondary metabolites and natural products. A more general name for this class of material is biological materials. Biomolecules are an important element of living organisms, those biomolecules are often endogenous, produced within the organism but organisms usually need exogenous biomolecules, for example certain nutrients, to survive.
Uridine-5′-triphosphate (UTP) is a pyrimidine nucleoside triphosphate, consisting of the organic base uracil linked to the 1′ carbon of the ribose sugar, and esterified with tri-phosphoric acid at the 5′ position. Its main role is as substrate for the synthesis of RNA during transcription. UTP is the precursor for the production of CTP via CTP synthetase. UTP can be biosynthesized from UDP by Nucleoside Diphosphate Kinase after using the phosphate group from ATP. UDP + ATP ⇌ UTP + ADP; both UTP and ATP are energetically equal.
A salvage pathway is a pathway in which a biological product is produced from intermediates in the degradative pathway of its own or a similar substance. The term often refers to nucleotide salvage in particular, in which nucleotides are synthesized from intermediates in their degradative pathway.
Guanosine monophosphate (GMP), also known as 5′-guanidylic acid or guanylic acid, is a nucleotide that is used as a monomer in RNA. It is an ester of phosphoric acid with the nucleoside guanosine. GMP consists of the phosphate group, the pentose sugar ribose, and the nucleobase guanine; hence it is a ribonucleoside monophosphate. Guanosine monophosphate is commercially produced by microbial fermentation.
Uridine monophosphate (UMP), also known as 5′-uridylic acid, is a nucleotide that is used as a monomer in RNA. It is an ester of phosphoric acid with the nucleoside uridine. UMP consists of the phosphate group, the pentose sugar ribose, and the nucleobase uracil; hence, it is a ribonucleotide monophosphate. As a substituent or radical its name takes the form of the prefix uridylyl-. The deoxy form is abbreviated dUMP. Covalent attachment of UMP is called uridylylation.
Cytidine monophosphate, also known as 5'-cytidylic acid or simply cytidylate, and abbreviated CMP, is a nucleotide that is used as a monomer in RNA. It is an ester of phosphoric acid with the nucleoside cytidine. CMP consists of the phosphate group, the pentose sugar ribose, and the nucleobase cytosine; hence, a ribonucleoside monophosphate. As a substituent it takes the form of the prefix cytidylyl-.
Thymidine diphosphate (TDP) or deoxythymidine diphosphate (dTDP) is a nucleotide diphosphate. It is an ester of pyrophosphoric acid with the nucleoside thymidine. dTDP consists of the pyrophosphate group, the pentose sugar ribose, and the nucleobase thymine. Unlike the other deoxyribonucleotides, thymidine diphosphate does not always contain the "deoxy" prefix in its name.
An antimetabolite is a chemical that inhibits the use of a metabolite, which is another chemical that is part of normal metabolism. Such substances are often similar in structure to the metabolite that they interfere with, such as the antifolates that interfere with the use of folic acid; thus, competitive inhibition can occur, and the presence of antimetabolites can have toxic effects on cells, such as halting cell growth and cell division, so these compounds are used as chemotherapy for cancer.
Nucleoside analogues are nucleosides which contain a nucleic acid analogue and a sugar. Nucleotide analogs are nucleotides which contain a nucleic acid analogue, a sugar, and a phosphate group with one to three phosphates.
A deoxyribonucleotide is a nucleotide that contains deoxyribose. They are the monomeric units of the informational biopolymer, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). Each deoxyribonucleotide comprises three parts: a deoxyribose sugar (monosaccharide), a nitrogenous base, and one phosphoryl group. The nitrogenous bases are either purines or pyrimidines, heterocycles whose structures support the specific base-pairing interactions that allow nucleic acids to carry information. The base is always bonded to the 1'-carbon of the deoxyribose, an analog of ribose in which the hydroxyl group of the 2'-carbon is replaced with a hydrogen atom. The third component, the phosphoryl group, attaches to the deoxyribose monomer via the hydroxyl group on the 5'-carbon of the sugar.
Nucleic acid metabolism is a collective term that refers to the variety of chemical reactions by which nucleic acids are either synthesized or degraded. Nucleic acids are polymers made up of a variety of monomers called nucleotides. Nucleotide synthesis is an anabolic mechanism generally involving the chemical reaction of phosphate, pentose sugar, and a nitrogenous base. Degradation of nucleic acids is a catabolic reaction and the resulting parts of the nucleotides or nucleobases can be salvaged to recreate new nucleotides. Both synthesis and degradation reactions require multiple enzymes to facilitate the event. Defects or deficiencies in these enzymes can lead to a variety of diseases.
Deoxycytidine kinase (dCK) is an enzyme which is encoded by the DCK gene in humans. dCK predominantly phosphorylates deoxycytidine (dC) and converts dC into deoxycytidine monophosphate. dCK catalyzes one of the initial steps in the nucleoside salvage pathway and has the potential to phosphorylate other preformed nucleosides, specifically deoxyadenosine (dA) and deoxyguanosine (dG), and convert them into their monophosphate forms. There has been recent biomedical research interest in investigating dCK's potential as a therapeutic target for different types of cancer.
Deoxyuridine monophosphate (dUMP), also known as deoxyuridylic acid or deoxyuridylate in its conjugate acid and conjugate base forms, respectively, is a deoxynucleotide.
Nucleotidyltransferases are transferase enzymes of phosphorus-containing groups, e.g., substituents of nucleotidylic acids or simply nucleoside monophosphates. The general reaction of transferring a nucleoside monophosphate moiety from A to B, can be written as:
Discovery and development of nucleoside and nucleotide reverse-transcriptase inhibitors began in the 1980s when the AIDS epidemic hit Western societies. NRTIs inhibit the reverse transcriptase (RT), an enzyme that controls the replication of the genetic material of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The first NRTI was zidovudine, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1987, which was the first step towards treatment of HIV. Six NRTI agents and one NtRTI have followed. The NRTIs and the NtRTI are analogues of endogenous 2´-deoxy-nucleoside and nucleotide. Drug-resistant viruses are an inevitable consequence of prolonged exposure of HIV-1 to anti-HIV drugs.
