Nucleic Acids, Genes, and Protein Synthesis

This chapter shows the pathway for the synthesis of adenosine monophosphate (AMP) and guanosine monophosphate (GMP) from inosine monophosphate. Additional amounts of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) are expended in synthesizing AMP and GMP. Two additional ATPs are consumed in converting each of the mononucleotides into trinucleotides with a total of 10 ATPs expended in the synthesis of one molecule of guanine triphosphate, GTP. Nucleotides (nucleic acids) are ubiquitous in animal and human diets, but they are not dietarily essential, as they are synthesized from rather simple components. The nucleic acids deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) are carriers of cellular genetic information. The chapter examines how the high-energy trinucleotides are used in the synthesis of DNA and RNA. DNA is a polymer assembled from the trinucleotides, dATP, dGTP, dCTP, and dTTP, in which the carbohydrate ribose has been reduced by NADPH₂, forming 2-deoxyribose.