Метаболические пути: синтез и распад веществ в клетке

Linked series of chemical reactions occurring within a cell

In biochemistry, a metabolic pathway is a linked series of chemical reactions occurring within a cell. The reactants, products, and intermediates of an enzymatic reaction are known as metabolites, which are modified by a sequence of chemical reactions catalyzed by enzymes. In most cases of a metabolic pathway, the product of one enzyme acts as the substrate for the next. However, side products are considered waste and removed from the cell. Different metabolic pathways function in the position within a eukaryotic cell and the significance of the pathway in the given compartment of the cell. For instance, the electron transport chain and oxidative phosphorylation all take place in the mitochondrial membrane. In contrast, glycolysis, pentose phosphate pathway, and fatty acid biosynthesis all occur in the cytosol of a cell. There are two types of metabolic pathways that are characterized by their ability to either synthesize molecules with the utilization of energy (anabolic pathway), or break down complex molecules and release energy in the process (catabolic pathway). The two pathways complement each other in that the energy released from one is used up by the other. The degradative process of a catabolic pathway provides the energy required to conduct the biosynthesis of an anabolic pathway. Pathways are required for the maintenance of homeostasis within an organism and the flux of metabolites through a pathway is regulated depending on the needs of the cell and the availability of the substrate. The end product of a pathway may be used immediately, initiate another metabolic pathway or be stored for later use. The metabolism of a cell consists of an elaborate network of interconnected pathways that enable the synthesis and breakdown of molecules (anabolism and catabolism).

A core set of energy producing catabolic pathways occur within all living organisms in some form. These pathways transfer the energy released by breakdown of nutrients into ATP and other small molecules used for energy (e. g. GTP, NADPH, FADH2). All cells can perform anaerobic respiration by glycolysis. Additionally, most organisms can perform more efficient aerobic respiration through the citric acid cycle and oxidative phosphorylation. Additionally plants, algae and cyanobacteria are able to use sunlight to anabolically synthesize compounds from non living matter by photosynthesis.

In contrast to catabolic pathways, anabolic pathways require an energy input to construct macromolecules such as polypeptides, nucleic acids, proteins, polysaccharides, and lipids. The isolated reaction of anabolism is unfavorable in a cell due to a positive Gibbs Free Energy (+ΔG). Thus, an input of chemical energy through a coupling with an exergonic reaction is necessary.

An amphibolic pathway is one that can be either catabolic or anabolic based on the availability of or the need for energy.

The flux of the entire pathway is regulated by the rate determining steps. The metabolic pathway in the cell is regulated by covalent or non covalent modifications. A covalent modification involves an addition or removal of a chemical bond, whereas a non covalent modification (also known as allosteric regulation) is the binding of the regulator to the enzyme via hydrogen bonds, electrostatic interactions, and Van Der Waals forces. The rate of turnover in a metabolic pathway, also known as the metabolic flux, is regulated based on the stoichiometric reaction model, the utilization rate of metabolites, and the translocation pace of molecules across the lipid bilayer. The regulation methods are based on experiments involving 13C labeling, which is then analyzed by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) or gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC MS) derived mass compositions. The aforementioned techniques synthesize a statistical interpretation of mass distribution in proteinogenic amino acids to the catalytic activities of enzymes in a cell. One such pathway is oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) within the electron transport chain (ETC). Various inhibitors can downregulate the electrochemical reactions that take place at Complex I, II, III, and IV, thereby preventing the formation of an electrochemical gradient and downregulating the movement of electrons through the ETC. The substrate level phosphorylation that occurs at ATP synthase can also be directly inhibited, preventing the formation of ATP that is necessary to supply energy for cancer cell proliferation. Some of these inhibitors, such as lonidamine and atovaquone, Various molecules can inhibit heme via different mechanisms. For instance, succinylacetone has been shown to decrease heme concentrations by inhibiting δ aminolevulinic acid in murine erythroleukemia cells. The primary structure of heme sequestering peptides, such as HSP1 and HSP2, can be modified to downregulate heme concentrations and reduce proliferation of non small lung cancer cells.

The tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) and glutaminolysis can also be targeted for cancer treatment, since they are essential for the survival and proliferation of cancer cells. Ivosidenib and Enasidenib, two FDA approved cancer treatments, can arrest the TCA cycle of cancer cells by inhibiting isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) and isocitrate dehydrogenase 2 (IDH2), respectively. In a clinical trial consisting of 199 adult patients with AML and an IDH2 mutation, 23% of patients experienced complete response (CR) or complete response with partial hematologic recovery (CRh) lasting a median of 8.2 months while on Enasidenib. Of the 157 patients who required transfusion at the beginning of the trial, 34% no longer required transfusions during the 56 day time period on Enasidenib. Of the 42% of patients who did not require transfusions at the beginning of the trial, 76% still did not require a transfusion by the end of the trial. Side effects of Enasidenib included nausea, diarrhea, elevated bilirubin and most notably, differentiation syndrome. Glutaminase (GLS), the enzyme responsible for converting glutamine to glutamate via hydrolytic deamidation during the first reaction of glutaminolysis, can also be targeted. In recent years, many small molecules, such as azaserine, acivicin, and CB 839 have been shown to inhibit glutaminase, thus reducing cancer cell viability and inducing apoptosis in cancer cells. Due to its effective antitumor ability in several cancer types such as ovarian, breast and lung cancers, CB 839 is the only GLS inhibitor currently undergoing clinical studies for FDA approval.

Many metabolic pathways are of commercial interest. For instance, the production of many antibiotics or other drugs requires complex pathways. The pathways to produce such compounds can be transplanted into microbes or other more suitable organism for production purposes. For example, the world's supply of the anti cancer drug vinblastine is produced by relatively ineffient extraction and purification of the precursors vindoline and catharanthine from the plant Catharanthus roseus, which are then chemically converted into vinblastine. The biosynthetic pathway to produce vinblastine, including 30 enzymatic steps, has been transferred into yeast cells which is a convenient system to grow in large amounts. With these genetic modifications yeast can use its own metabolites geranyl pyrophosphate and tryptophan to produce the precursors of catharanthine and vindoline. This process required 56 genetic edits, including expression of 34 heterologous genes from plants in yeast cells.