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coenzyme A


n. (Abbr. CoA)

A coenzyme present in all living cells that functions as an acyl group carrier and is necessary for fatty acid synthesis and oxidation, pyruvate oxidation, and other acetylation reactions.


 
 
Medical Dictionary: coenzyme A

n. (Abbr. CoA)

A coenzyme present in all living cells that functions as an acyl group carrier and is necessary for fatty acid synthesis and oxidation, pyruvate oxidation, and other acetylation.

 

Coenzyme A.


 
WordNet: coenzyme A
Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: a coenzyme present in all living cells; essential to metabolism of carbohydrates and fats and some amino acids


 
Wikipedia: coenzyme A
Coenzyme A
Coenzym_A.svg
Coenzyme-A-3D-balls.png
Identifiers
CAS number 85-61-0
PubChem 317
MeSH Coenzyme+A
Properties
Molecular formula C21H36N7O16P3S
Molar mass 767.535
Except where noted otherwise, data are given for
materials in their standard state
(at 25 °C, 100 kPa)

Infobox disclaimer and references

Coenzyme A (CoA, CoASH, or HSCoA) is a coenzyme, notable for its role in the synthesis and oxidization of fatty acids, and the oxidation of pyruvate in the citric acid cycle. It is adapted from cysteamine, pantothenate, and adenosine triphosphate.

Biosynthesis

Coenzyme A is synthesized in a five-step process from pantothenate:

  1. Pantothenate is phosphorylated to 4'-phosphopantothenate by the enzyme pantothenate kinase
  2. A cysteine is added to 4'-phosphopantothenate by the enzyme phosphopantothenoylcysteine synthetase to form 4'-phospho-N-pantothenoylcysteine (PPC)
  3. PPC is decarboxylated to 4'-phosphopantetheine by phosphopantothenoylcysteine decarboxylase
  4. 4'-phosphopantetheine is adenylylated to form dephospho-CoA by the enzyme phosphopantetheine adenylyl transerase
  5. Finally, dephospho-CoA is phosphorylated using ATP to coenzyme A by the enzyme dephosphocoenzyme A kinase.

Function

Since coenzyme A is chemically a thiol, it can react with carboxylic acids to form thioesters, thus functioning as an acyl group carrier. A molecule of coenzyme A carrying an acetyl group is also referred to as acetyl-CoA. When it is not attached to an acyl group it is usually referred to as 'CoASH' or 'HSCoA'.

List of coenzyme A activated acyl groups

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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Medical Dictionary. The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company Read more
Veterinary Dictionary. The Veterinary Dictionary. Copyright © 2007 by Elsevier. All rights reserved.  Read more
WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Coenzyme A" Read more

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