chemistry

Inorganic phosphate transporter family

Inorganic phosphate transporter family is a chemistry topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Inorganic phosphate transporter family rather than just read about it. In short: The inorganic phosphate transporter (PiT) family is a group of carrier proteins derived from Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotes. Function Functionally-characterized members of the family appear to catalyze inorganic phosphate (Pi) or inorganic sulfate uptake either by H+ or Na+ symport.

Key takeaways

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Reference excerpt

The inorganic phosphate transporter (PiT) family is a group of carrier proteins derived from Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotes.

Function Functionally-characterized members of the family appear to catalyze inorganic phosphate (Pi) or inorganic sulfate uptake either by H+ or Na+ symport. Both PitA (TC# 2.A.20.1.1) and PitB (TC# 2.A.20.1.2) of E. coli probably catalyze metal ion·phosphate:H+ symport, where Mg2+, Ca2+ or Zn2+ (and probably other divalent cations) can complex with Pi. The mammalian proteins (i.e., TC# 2.A.20.2.7) have been reported to function as viral receptors, but they undoubtedly function as transport proteins as well. For numerous gammaretroviruses, such as the gibbon ape leukemia virus, woolly monkey virus, feline leukemia virus subgroup B, feline leukemia virus subgroup T, and 10A1 murine leukemia virus, this receptor is the human type III sodium-dependent inorganic phosphate transporter, SLC20A1, also known as PiT1. The malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, grows within its host erythrocyte and induces an increase in the permeability of the erythrocyte membrane to a range of solutes including Na+ and K+. This results in a progressive increase in the concentration of Na+ in the erythrocyte cytosol. The parasite cytosol has a relatively low Na+ concentration, generating a large inward Na+ gradient across the parasite plasma membrane. Saliba et al. (2006) showed that the parasite exploits the Na+ electrochemical gradient to energize the uptake of inorganic phosphate (Pi) with a stoichiometry of 2Na+:1Pi and with an apparent preference for the monovalent over the divalent form of Pi (see TC #2.A.20.2.5). The generalized transport reactions possibly catalyzed by members of the PiT family are:

HPO2−4 (out) + [nH+ or Na+] (out) → HPO2−4 (in) + [nH+ or Na+] (in) Me2+ · HPO2−4 (out) + nH+ (out) → Me2+ · HPO2−4 (in) + nH+ (in) SO2−4 (out) + nH+ (out) → SO2−4 (in) + nH+ (in).

Structure The molecular sizes of Pit family members are reported to vary from 354 to 681 residues (10-12 TMSs) with the mammalian and Plasmodium proteins exhibiting the largest sizes. The sulfate permease of B. subtilis, CysP, is of 354 residues with 11 putative TMSs. As of early 2016, it appears no crystal structures are available for PiT proteins.

Phylogeny Phylogenetic grouping of the phosphate transport proteins generally correlates with organismal phylogeny. Thus the fungal, plant, animal and archaeal proteins each cluster separately. However, the tree exhibits two clusters of bacterial phosphate transport proteins. One bacterial cluster is distant from the eukaryotic proteins while the other cluster is close to the plant proteins. Both clusters include proteins from Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. The sulfate permease, CysP (TC# 2.A.20.4.1), is distantly related to the phosphate permeases. Members of the PiT family arose by a tandem internal gene duplication event. Surprisingly, TopPred predicts a 12 TMS topology for the yeast Pho89 protein, but the homologous regions are not predicted to show similar topological features.

See also SLC20A1 Phosphate permease Transporter Classification Database

References

As of this edit, this article uses content from "2.A.20 The Inorganic Phosphate Transporter (PiT) Family", which is licensed in a way that permits reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, but not under the GFDL. All relevant terms must be followed.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Inorganic phosphate transporter family

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Inorganic phosphate transporter family claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In chemistry, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Inorganic phosphate transporter family before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Inorganic phosphate transporter family ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Inorganic phosphate transporter family

In research: Inorganic phosphate transporter family appears in chemistry research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Inorganic phosphate transporter family in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Inorganic phosphate transporter family is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Protein families, Solute carrier family, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Inorganic phosphate transporter family outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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Frequently asked questions

What is Inorganic phosphate transporter family in simple terms?

The inorganic phosphate transporter (PiT) family is a group of carrier proteins derived from Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotes. Function Functionally-characterized members of the family appear to catalyze inorganic phosphate (Pi) or inorganic sulfate uptake either by…

Why does Inorganic phosphate transporter family matter?

Because it connects several chemistry ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Inorganic phosphate transporter family?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

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