Polyphosphate and its physiological function in Mycobacteria-A review

Abstract:

Tuberculosis is still a global infectious disease. New drugs to shorten the course of treatment and new vaccines are the key points to control tuberculosis. The physiological study of Mycobacteria will contribute to the above-mentioned purposes. Polyphosphate plays an important role in the stress adaptation in bacteria. And there are two classes of enzymes:polyphosphate kinase and exopolyphosphatase involved in the polyphosphate metabolism to control the dynamic equilibrium of polyphosphate level in Mycobacteria. Present paper summarized the progress in metabolism and physiological roles of polyphosphate in Mycobacteria, to provide useful information for studying the physiological function of polyphosphate in Mycobacteria.

Key words:Mycobacteria;polyphosphate;polyphosphate kinase;exopolyphosphatase;stress adaptation;stringent response