August 2002
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The prodution of sucrose takes place in plants, to store energy produced during photosynthesis. The extraction of sucrose from plants like sugar cane and sugar beets is used to produce sugar for consumption, making this pathway of significant economic interest. The starting point for sucrose synthesis is activated glucose, UDP-glucose. The synthesis of disaccharides in general takes place through a monosaccharide intermediate activated by the addition of a nucleotide group. UDP-glucose used in sucrose synthesis is derived from glucose-1-phosphate, which is itself derived from photosynthetic products. The fructose-6-phosphate involved in sucrose synthesis is also derived from photosynthetic products. The enzyme sucrose 6-phosphate synthase is regulated in several ways. Glucose-6-phosphate activates this enzyme, and dephosphorylation of this enzyme in light also activates sucrose 6-phosphate synthase, coordinating sucrose synthesis with photosynthesis. |
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