Pyrimidine deoxyribonucleotides synthesis from ribonucleotides

The manner in which the reduction of ribonucleotides to deoxyribonucleotides is regulated has been studied with reductases from relatively few species. The enzymes from E. coli and from Novikoff s rat liver tumor have a complex pattern of inhibition and activation (fig. 23.25). ATP activates the reduction of both CDP and UDP. As dTTP is formed by metabolism of both dCDP and dUDP, it activates GDP reduction, and as dGTP accumulates, it activates ADP reduction. Finally, accumulation of dATP causes inhibition of the reduction of all substrates. This regulation is reinforced by dGTP inhibition of the reduction of GDP, UDP, and CDP and by dTTP inhibition of the reduction of the pyrimidine substrates. Because evidence suggests that ribonucleotide reductase may be the rate-limiting step in deoxyribonucleotide synthesis in at least some animal cells, these allosteric effects may be important in controlling deoxyribonucleotide synthesis. 

The synthesis of deoxyuridine, cytidine, deoxycytidine and thymidine nucleotides from UMP (Fig. 6.13) involves three reactions CTP synthetase, ribonucleotide reductase, and thymidylate synthase (80). The first enzyme converts UTP into CTP and the second catalyzes the conversion of CDP, UDP, ADP and GDP into their respective deoxyribonucleotides. The last enzyme, thymidylate synthase, catalyzes the reductive methylation of deoxyUMP at the C-5 position giving deoxyTMP. The human enzyme has been extensively studied as it is a target enzyme in cancer chemotherapy. Besides these three enzymes, two other enzymes are involved in pyrimidine nucleotide synthesis and interconversion. DeoxyCMP deaminase converts deoxyCMP into deoxyUMP and deoxyUTP triphosphatase converts deoxyUTP into deoxyUMP. Giardia lamblia, and Trichomonas vaginalis lack both ribonucleotide reductase and thymidylate synthase and... 

The biosynthetic pathway to UMP starts from carbamoyl phosphate and results in the synthesis of the pyrimidine orotate, to which ribose phosphate is subsequently attached. CTP is subsequently formed from UTP. Deoxyribonucleotides are formed by reduction of ribonucleotides (diphosphates in most cells). Thy-midylate is formed from dUMP. 

Purine deoxyribonucleotides are derived primarily from the respective ribonucleotide (Fig. 6.2). Intracellular concentrations of deoxyribonucleotides are very low compared to ribonucleotides usually about 1% that of ribonucleotides. Synthesis of deoxyribonucleotides is by enzymatic reduction of ribonucleotide-diphosphates by ribonucleotide reductase. One enzyme catalyzes the conversion of both purine and pyrimidine ribonucleotides and is subject to a complex control mechanism in which an excess of one deoxyribonucleotide compound inhibits the reduction of other ribonucleotides. Whereas the levels of the other enzymes involved with purine and pyrimidine metabolism remain relatively constant through the cell cycle, ribonucleotide reductase level changes with the cell cycle. The concentration of ribonucleotide reductase is very low in the cell except during S-phase when DNA is synthesized. While enzymatic pathways, such as kinases, exist for the salvage of pre-existing deoxyribosyl compounds, nearly all cells depend on the reduction of ribonucleotides for their deoxyribonucleotide... 

Both the pyrimidines and the purines are built up from small precursor molecules which are readily available in the metabolic pool (page 185). The free bases are not synthesized as such but, while being assembled, the partially constructed ring structure reacts with a special phosphorylated pentose known as PRPP (5-phosphoribosyl-l-pyrophosphate) and forms a ribonucleotide. The deoxyribonucleotides, with the exception of TMP which is formed by methylation of deoxyuridylate, are formed by reduction of the corresponding ribonucleoside diphosphate. The conversion is precisely controlled by allosteric effects which ensure that all four deoxyribonucleotides are available in amounts appropriate for nucleic acid synthesis. 

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