Adenosine phosphorolysis

Phosphorolysis of the glycosyl esters of sugar nucleotides leads to the corresponding nucleoside 5 -pyrophosphate and glycosyl phosphate. A wheat-germ enzyme specific for adenosine 5 -(a-D-glucopy-ranosyl pyrophosphate),462 and a yeast enzyme specific for guanosine 5 -(a-D-mannopyranosyl pyrophosphate),463,464 are known. 

T.b. gambiense bloodstream forms have APRTase, HGPRTase, adenosine kinase and adenylosuccinate synthetase but lack adenosine deaminase. Two phosphorylase activities have been described for the bloodstream forms of T.b. brucei (42,50). One catalyzes the reversible phosphorolysis of adenosine, inosine and guanosine and the other is specific for adenosine and methylthioadenosine. Guanine deaminase is present whereas both adenosine and adenine deaminase are absent (8). Similar results have been reported for T. congolense (51). T. vivax is unique among the other trypanosomes in that it has an adenine deaminase (51). 

Am. The hormones epinephrine and glucagon cannot penetrate cell membranes. They affect metabolic processes by binding to specific receptors on the membrane, which receptors in turn activate a specific enzyme bound to the inner membrane surface, adenylate cyclase. This enzyme converts ATP to cyclic AMP (cyclic adenosine monophosphate), or c-AMP. The presence of c-AMP activates another enzyme, protein kinase, which phosphorylates and activates phosphorylase kinase. Phosphorylase kinase phosphorylates phosphorylase b (inactive) to form phosphorylase a (active) which in turn cleaves glucose from glycogen by phosphorolysis to yield glucose-I-PO4. 

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