Ketopantoic acid is the
organic compound
Some chemical authorities define an organic compound as a chemical compound that contains a carbon–hydrogen or carbon–carbon bond; others consider an organic compound to be any chemical compound that contains carbon. For example, carbon-co ...
with the formula HOCH
2(CH
3)
2CC(O)CO
2H. At
physiological condition Physiological condition or, more often "physiological conditions" is a term used in biology, biochemistry, and medicine. It refers to conditions of the external or internal milieu that may occur in nature for that organism or cell system, in contra ...
s, ketopantoic acid exists as its
conjugate base
A conjugate acid, within the Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory, is a chemical compound formed when an acid gives a proton () to a base—in other words, it is a base with a hydrogen ion added to it, as it loses a hydrogen ion in the reve ...
, ketopantoate (HOCH
2(CH
3)
2CC(O)CO
2−).
Biosynthetic context
Its biosynthesis proceeds from
ketoisovalerate by
hydroxymethylation
Hydroxymethylation is a chemical reaction that installs the CH2OH group. The transformation can be implemented in many ways and applies to both industrial and biochemical processes.
Hydroxymethylation with formaldehyde
A common method for hydroxy ...
:
:(CH
3)
2CHC(O)CO
2− + CH
2O → HOCH
2(CH
3)
2CC(O)CO
2−
This conversion is catalyzed by ketopantoate hydroxymethyltransferase, which gives ketopantoate.
Ketopantoate is substrate for
2-dehydropantoate 2-reductase, which produces
pantoate
Pantoic acid is the alpha hydroxy acid with the formula HOCH2C(CH3)2CH(OH)CO2H. The compound is almost always encountered in a biological context, as an aqueous solution of its conjugate base pantoate HOCH2C(CH3)2CH(OH)CO2-. The amide of pantoic a ...
, a precursor to
pantothenic acid
Pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) is a B vitamin and an essential nutrient. All animals need pantothenic acid in order to synthesize coenzyme A (CoA), which is essential for cellular energy production and for the synthesis and degradation of prote ...
, a common prosthetic group.
[{{cite book , doi=10.1016/S0083-6729(01)61005-7, chapter=The Biosynthesis of Coenzyme a in Bacteria, title=Cofactor Biosynthesis, series=Vitamins & Hormones, year=2001, last1=Begley, first1=Tadhg P., last2=Kinsland, first2=Cynthia, last3=Strauss, first3=Erick, volume=61, pages=157–171, pmid=11153265, isbn=9780127098616]
References