Abstract
Bacterial and eukaryotic polyphosphate (polyP) accumulates in acidic vacuoles that have been named the acidocalcisomes to highlight their high calcium content together with the presence of other inorganic and organic cations. The large amount of polyP and cations in acidocalcisomes explains their high electron density when they are examined by electron microscopy. PolyP synthesis and translocation to the yeast acidocalcisome-like vacuole is catalyzed by the vacuolar transporter chaperone 4 (Vtc4), which is the catalytic subunit of the VTC complex and requires a proton gradient generated by the proton pump for this translocation. Similar VTC complexes have been found in acidocalcisomes of trypanosomatids and algae. Acidocalcisome polyP could be rapidly hydrolyzed under alkaline or hyposmotic stress. Hydrolysis of acidocalcisome polyP has been studied in trypanosomatids where it is catalyzed by an exopolyphosphatase (PPX) or by the exopolyphosphatase activity of a vacuolar soluble pyrophosphatase (VSP). It has been found that this hydrolytic process favors the release of osmolytes (phosphorus and cations) to the cytosol helping the regulatory volume decrease that follows hyposmotic stress. In some mammalian cells, like platelets and mast cells, acidocalcisome polyP is released into the circulation where it can have potent procoagulant, antifibrinolytic, and inflammatory actions and, under pathological conditions, could be involved in thrombosis. Fusion of acidocalcisomes with the contractile vacuole complex of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, Dictyostelium discoideum, and Trypanosoma cruzi could also be involved in transfer of polyP or its hydrolytic products to the bladder to increase its osmolarity and ensuing water uptake necessary for its function. Finally, downregulation and upregulation of the expression of enzymes involved in polyP metabolism have revealed the role of polyP in growth, infectivity, and persistence of different parasites.
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Work in the author’s laboratory is supported by the US National Institutes of Health grants AI107663 and AI077538.
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Docampo, R. (2016). Polyphosphate Storage and Function in Acidocalcisomes. In: Kulakovskaya, T., Pavlov, E., Dedkova, E. (eds) Inorganic Polyphosphates in Eukaryotic Cells. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-41073-9_3
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