Adenosine, generally kinase

In the presence of calcium, the primary contractile protein, myosin, is phosphorylated by the myosin light-chain kinase initiating the subsequent actin-activation of the myosin adenosine triphosphate activity and resulting in muscle contraction. Removal of calcium inactivates the kinase and allows the myosin light chain to dephosphorylate myosin which results in muscle relaxation. Therefore the general biochemical mechanism for the muscle contractile process is dependent on the avaUabUity of a sufficient intraceUular calcium concentration. 

Unlike classical neurotransmitters, adenosine does not have a rapid synaptic uptake system (as for the biogenic amines), and its chemical inactivation system is not as rapid as for the transmitter acetylcholine, for example. Adenosine may be metabolized extracellularly and inactivated with respect to the ARs in a more general fashion by the widespread enzymes adenosine kinase (AK, to produce AMP) and adenosine deaminase (AD, to produce inosine). Both AMP and inosine are only weakly active at ARs, depending on the subtype. 

Adenosine is not a classical neurotransmitter because it is not stored in neuronal synaptic granules or released in quanta. It is generally thought of as a neuromodulator that gains access to the extracellular space in part from the breakdown of extracellular adenine nucleotides and in part by translocation from the cytoplasm of cells by nucleoside transport proteins, particularly in stressed or ischemic tissues (Fig. 17-2C). Extracellular adenosine is rapidly removed in part by reuptake into cells and conversion to AMP by adenosine kinase and in part by degradation to inosine by adenosine deaminases. Adenosine deaminase is mainly cytosolic but it also occurs as a cell surface ectoenzyme. 

Beyond the effect of magnesium ion concentration on the equilibrium hydrolysis of adenosine triphosphate to adenosine diphosphate , there is ample evidence that MgATP is generally the most widespread substrate in kinase-type phosphotransferase reactions as well as other ATP-dependent processes. The extent to which MgATP is formed in solution depends on the free (or uncomplexed) magnesium ion concentration, as shown by the following equilibrium constant ... 

Generally, all conversions in the biosynthetic direction, i.e. iPARMP— iPAR— iPA (catalysed by 5 -nucleotidase, (EC 3.1.3.5), and adenosine nucleosidase, (EC 3.2.2.7), respectively, c/. Fig. 2) may also proceed in the opposite direction, i.e. base-— nucleoside — nucleotide (catalysed by adenosine phosphorylase and adenosine kinase, respectively). All these enzymes require both Ade and iPA or Ado and iPAR, respectively, as substrates. They were characterised in wheat germ [15-18] and lupin seeds [19]. Interestingly, no K, -constants were reported for Z-type cytokinins (see summary in [22]). However, as seen in H-labelled Z-derivatives feeding experiments, Z-type cytokinins are also interconverted in a similar way [82,121,122]. Moreover, the specificity of these enzymes is not too strict with respect to the side chain configuration and one may speculate that this complex may function for most if not all native cytokinins [21,81]. 

Historically, the first route of purine nucleotide synthesis to be studied in detail was that involving the phosphorylation of adenosine by ATP. More recently, evidence has been presented for the existence in animal tissues of two other purine nucleoside kinases. The general reaction is... 

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