Linked Life Data

18365665

Source:http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/id/18365665

Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:dateCreated
2008-3-27
pubmed:abstractText
Purines and pyrimidines are indispensable to all life, performing many vital functions for cells: ATP serves as the universal currency of cellular energy, cAMP and cGMP are key second messenger molecules, purine and pyrimidine nucleotides are precursors for activated forms of both carbohydrates and lipids, nucleotide derivatives of vitamins are essential cofactors in metabolic processes, and nucleoside triphosphates are the immediate precursors for DNA and RNA synthesis. Unlike their mammalian and insect hosts, Leishmania lack the metabolic machinery to make purine nucleotides de novo and must rely on their host for preformed purines. The obligatory nature of purine salvage offers, therefore, a plethora of potential targets for drug targeting, and the pathway has consequently been the focus of considerable scientific investigation. In contrast, Leishmania are prototrophic for pyrimidines and also express a small complement of pyrimidine salvage enzymes. Because the pyrimidine nucleotide biosynthetic pathways of Leishmania and humans are similar, pyrimidine metabolism in Leishmania has generally been considered less amenable to therapeutic manipulation than the purine salvage pathway. However, evidence garnered from a variety of parasitic protozoa suggests that the selective inhibition of pyrimidine biosynthetic enzymes offers a rational therapeutic paradigm. In this chapter, we present an overview of the purine and pyrimidine pathways in Leishmania, make comparisons to the equivalent pathways in their mammalian host, and explore how these pathways might be amenable to selective therapeutic targeting.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:issn
0065-2598
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
625
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
141-54
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2008
pubmed:articleTitle
Purine and pyrimidine metabolism in Leishmania.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Oregon Health & Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd, Portland, Oregon 97239-3098, USA.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Review