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Clemson University

Theses/Dissertations

Acetate

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Full-Text Articles in Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology

Exploring Acetate Metabolism: Genetically Characterizing Acetate Production And Acetate Utilization In The Fungal Pathogen Cryptococcus Neoformans, Rodrigo Catalan-Hurtado Aug 2024

Exploring Acetate Metabolism: Genetically Characterizing Acetate Production And Acetate Utilization In The Fungal Pathogen Cryptococcus Neoformans, Rodrigo Catalan-Hurtado

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The basidiomycete Cryptococcus neoformans is an invasive opportunistic fungal pathogen and the most frequent cause of fungal meningitis resulting in approximately 112,000 deaths per year worldwide. Recently, the World Health Organization systematically prioritized fungal pathogens in which C. neoformans was among four fungal pathogens deemed critically important. Current methods of treatment are inadequate for most of the infected population; therefore, it is imperative to find novel therapeutic targets. Previous studies have shown that acetate is a major metabolite found in biopsies of C. neoformans infected mouse brain and lung tissues. Two potential pathways for acetate production have been identified. …


Phosphotransacetylase And Xylulose 5-Phosphate/Fructose 6-Phosphate Phosphoketolase: Two Eukaryotic Partners Of Acetate Kinase, Tonya Taylor May 2015

Phosphotransacetylase And Xylulose 5-Phosphate/Fructose 6-Phosphate Phosphoketolase: Two Eukaryotic Partners Of Acetate Kinase, Tonya Taylor

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Although acetate is a predominant metabolite produced by many eukaryotic microbes, far less attention has been given to acetate metabolism in eukaryotes than in bacteria and archaea. Acetate kinase (Ack), which catalyzes the reversible phosphorylation of acetate from ATP, is a key enzyme in bacterial acetate metabolism. Ack primarily partners with phosphotransacetylase (Pta), which catalyzes the generation of acetyl phosphate from acetyl-CoA, but can also partner with xylulose 5-phosphate/fructose 6-phosphate phosphoketolase (Xfp), which produces acetyl phosphate from either xylulose 5-phosphate or fructose 6-phosphate. The Ack-Pta pathway, found primarily in bacteria, is also present in lower eukaryotes such as the green …


Allosteric Regulation Of Bacterial And Fungal Xylulose 5-Phosphate/ Fructose 6-Phosphate Phosphoketolases (Xfps), Katie Glenn Dec 2014

Allosteric Regulation Of Bacterial And Fungal Xylulose 5-Phosphate/ Fructose 6-Phosphate Phosphoketolases (Xfps), Katie Glenn

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Acetate is excreted as a metabolic end product in many microbes. Acetate production has primarily been studied in bacteria and archaea but is known to occur in eukaryotic organisms as well. For example, acetate is one of the most abundant metabolites excreted by the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans during cryptococcosis suggesting that acetate production may be important during pathogenesis. One possible pathway for acetate production in C. neoformans involves the enzymes xylulose 5-phosphate/ fructose 6-phosphate phosphoketolase (Xfp), which can generate acetyl phosphate from either fructose 6-phosphate (F6P) or xylulose 5-phosphate (X5P), and acetate kinase (Ack), which can then convert acetyl …


Investigations Of The Ppi-Dependent Acetate Kinase From The Parasite Entamoeba Histolytica, Matthew Fowler Aug 2011

Investigations Of The Ppi-Dependent Acetate Kinase From The Parasite Entamoeba Histolytica, Matthew Fowler

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Acetate, a short-chain fatty acid that plays a key role in all domains of life, can be utilized as a carbon source or excreted as a product of metabolism. Acetate kinase (ACK), a member of the acetate and sugar kinase-Hsp70-actin (ASKHA) enzyme superfamily, is responsible for the reversible phosphorylation of acetate to acetyl phosphate utilizing ATP as the phosphoryl donor. Acetate kinases are ubiquitous in the Bacteria, found in one genus of Archaea, and are also present in microbes of the Eukarya. A partially purified ACK which can utilize pyrophosphate (PPi) as the phosphoryl donor in the acetyl …