Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP, cyclic AMP, or 3',5'-cyclic

adenosine monophosphate Adenosine monophosphate (AMP), also known as 5'-adenylic acid, is a nucleotide. AMP consists of a phosphate group, the sugar ribose, and the nucleobase adenine; it is an ester of phosphoric acid and the nucleoside adenosine. As a substituent it t ...

) is a

second messenger Second messengers are intracellular signaling molecules released by the cell in response to exposure to extracellular signaling molecules—the first messengers. (Intercellular signals, a non-local form or cell signaling, encompassing both first me ...

important in many biological processes. cAMP is a derivative of

adenosine triphosphate Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is an organic compound that provides energy to drive many processes in living cells, such as muscle contraction, nerve impulse propagation, condensate dissolution, and chemical synthesis. Found in all known forms of ...

(ATP) and used for intracellular

signal transduction Signal transduction is the process by which a chemical or physical signal is transmitted through a cell as a series of molecular events, most commonly protein phosphorylation catalyzed by protein kinases, which ultimately results in a cellula ...

in many different organisms, conveying the

cAMP-dependent pathway In the field of molecular biology, the cAMP-dependent pathway, also known as the adenylyl cyclase pathway, is a G protein-coupled receptor-triggered signaling cascade used in cell communication. Discovery cAMP was discovered by Earl Sutherlan ...

History

Earl Sutherland Earl Wilbur Sutherland Jr. (November 19, 1915 – March 9, 1974) was an American pharmacologist and biochemist born in Burlingame, Kansas. Sutherland won a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1971 "for his discoveries concerning the mechanis ...

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

won a

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded yearly by the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute for outstanding discoveries in physiology or medicine. The Nobel Prize is not a single prize, but five separate prizes that, accord ...

in 1971 "for his discoveries concerning the mechanisms of the action of hormones", especially epinephrine, via

s (such as cyclic adenosine monophosphate, cyclic AMP).

Synthesis

Cyclic

AMP #REDIRECT Amp {{Redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from ambiguous page ...

is synthesized from ATP by

adenylate cyclase Adenylate cyclase (EC 4.6.1.1, also commonly known as adenyl cyclase and adenylyl cyclase, abbreviated AC) is an enzyme with systematic name ATP diphosphate-lyase (cyclizing; 3′,5′-cyclic-AMP-forming). It catalyzes the following reaction: :A ...

located on the inner side of the plasma membrane and anchored at various locations in the interior of the cell. Adenylate cyclase is ''activated'' by a range of signaling molecules through the activation of adenylate cyclase stimulatory G ( G_s)-protein-coupled receptors. Adenylate cyclase is ''inhibited'' by agonists of adenylate cyclase inhibitory G (G_i)-protein-coupled receptors. Liver adenylate cyclase responds more strongly to glucagon, and muscle adenylate cyclase responds more strongly to adrenaline. cAMP decomposition into

AMP #REDIRECT Amp {{Redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from ambiguous page ...

is catalyzed by the enzyme

phosphodiesterase A phosphodiesterase (PDE) is an enzyme that breaks a phosphodiester bond. Usually, ''phosphodiesterase'' refers to cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases, which have great clinical significance and are described below. However, there are many oth ...

Functions

cAMP is a

, used for intracellular signal transduction, such as transferring into cells the effects of

hormone A hormone (from the Greek participle , "setting in motion") is a class of signaling molecules in multicellular organisms that are sent to distant organs by complex biological processes to regulate physiology and behavior. Hormones are required ...

s like

glucagon Glucagon is a peptide hormone, produced by alpha cells of the pancreas. It raises concentration of glucose and fatty acids in the bloodstream, and is considered to be the main catabolic hormone of the body. It is also used as a Glucagon (medicati ...

and

adrenaline Adrenaline, also known as epinephrine, is a hormone and medication which is involved in regulating visceral functions (e.g., respiration). It appears as a white microcrystalline granule. Adrenaline is normally produced by the adrenal glands and ...

, which cannot pass through the plasma membrane. It is also involved in the activation of

protein kinase A protein kinase is a kinase which selectively modifies other proteins by covalently adding phosphates to them (phosphorylation) as opposed to kinases which modify lipids, carbohydrates, or other molecules. Phosphorylation usually results in a fu ...

s. In addition, cAMP binds to and regulates the function of

ion channels Ion channels are pore-forming membrane proteins that allow ions to pass through the channel pore. Their functions include establishing a resting membrane potential, shaping action potentials and other electrical signals by gating the flow of io ...

such as the

HCN channel Hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide–gated (HCN) channels are integral membrane proteins that serve as nonselective voltage-gated ion channel, voltage-gated cation ion channel, channels in the plasma membranes of heart and brain cells. H ...

s and a few other cyclic nucleotide-binding proteins such as Epac1 and

RAPGEF2 Rap guanine nucleotide exchange factor 2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''RAPGEF2'' gene. RAPGEF2 is a cyclic AMP binding protein. Function Members of the RAS subfamily of GTPases function in signal transduction as GTP/GDP-regu ...

Role in eukaryotic cells

cAMP is associated with kinases function in several biochemical processes, including the regulation of

glycogen Glycogen is a multibranched polysaccharide of glucose that serves as a form of energy storage in animals, fungi, and bacteria. The polysaccharide structure represents the main storage form of glucose in the body. Glycogen functions as one o ...

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double ...

, and

lipid Lipids are a broad group of naturally-occurring molecules which includes fats, waxes, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins (such as vitamins A, D, E and K), monoglycerides, diglycerides, phospholipids, and others. The functions of lipids include ...

metabolism Metabolism (, from el, μεταβολή ''metabolē'', "change") is the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. The three main functions of metabolism are: the conversion of the energy in food to energy available to run cell ...

. In eukaryotes, cyclic AMP works by activating protein kinase A (PKA, or

cAMP-dependent protein kinase In cell biology, protein kinase A (PKA) is a family of enzymes whose activity is dependent on cellular levels of cyclic AMP (cAMP). PKA is also known as cAMP-dependent protein kinase (). PKA has several functions in the cell, including regulatio ...

). PKA is normally inactive as a tetrameric

holoenzyme Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as product (ch ...

, consisting of two

catalytic Catalysis () is the process of increasing the rate of a chemical reaction by adding a substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed in the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst recyc ...

and two regulatory units (C₂R₂), with the regulatory units blocking the catalytic centers of the catalytic units. Cyclic AMP binds to specific locations on the regulatory units of the protein kinase, and causes dissociation between the regulatory and catalytic subunits, thus enabling those catalytic units to

phosphorylate In chemistry, phosphorylation is the attachment of a phosphate group to a molecule or an ion. This process and its inverse, dephosphorylation, are common in biology and could be driven by natural selection. Text was copied from this source, wh ...

substrate proteins. The active subunits catalyze the transfer of phosphate from ATP to specific serine or threonine residues of protein substrates. The phosphorylated proteins may act directly on the cell's ion channels, or may become activated or inhibited enzymes. Protein kinase A can also phosphorylate specific proteins that bind to promoter regions of DNA, causing increases in transcription. Not all protein kinases respond to cAMP. Several classes of

s, including protein kinase C, are not cAMP-dependent. Further effects mainly depend on

, which vary based on the type of cell. Still, there are some minor PKA-independent functions of cAMP, e.g., activation of

calcium channel A calcium channel is an ion channel which shows selective permeability to calcium ions. It is sometimes synonymous with voltage-gated calcium channel, although there are also ligand-gated calcium channels. Comparison tables The following tables e ...

s, providing a minor pathway by which

growth hormone-releasing hormone Growth may refer to: Biology * Auxology, the study of all aspects of human physical growth * Bacterial growth * Cell growth * Growth hormone, a peptide hormone that stimulates growth * Human development (biology) * Plant growth * Secondary growth ...

causes a release of

growth hormone Growth hormone (GH) or somatotropin, also known as human growth hormone (hGH or HGH) in its human form, is a peptide hormone that stimulates growth, cell reproduction, and cell regeneration in humans and other animals. It is thus important in h ...

. However, the view that the majority of the effects of cAMP are controlled by PKA is an outdated one. In 1998 a family of cAMP-sensitive proteins with

guanine nucleotide exchange factor Guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs) are proteins or protein domains that activate monomeric GTPases by stimulating the release of guanosine diphosphate (GDP) to allow binding of guanosine triphosphate (GTP). A variety of unrelated structu ...

(GEF) activity was discovered. These are termed Exchange proteins activated by cAMP (Epac) and the family comprises Epac1 and Epac2. The mechanism of activation is similar to that of PKA: the GEF domain is usually masked by the N-terminal region containing the cAMP binding domain. When cAMP binds, the domain dissociates and exposes the now-active GEF domain, allowing Epac to activate small Ras-like GTPase proteins, such as

Rap1 Rap1 (Ras-proximate-1 or Ras-related protein 1) is a small GTPase, which are small cytosolic proteins that act like cellular switches and are vital for effective signal transduction. There are two isoforms of the Rap1 protein, each encoded by ...

Additional role of secreted cAMP in social amoebae

In the species ''

Dictyostelium discoideum ''Dictyostelium discoideum'' is a species of soil-dwelling amoeba belonging to the phylum Amoebozoa, infraphylum Mycetozoa. Commonly referred to as slime mold, ''D. discoideum'' is a eukaryote that transitions from a collection of unicellular ...

'', cAMP acts outside the cell as a secreted signal. The

chemotactic Chemotaxis (from '' chemo-'' + ''taxis'') is the movement of an organism or entity in response to a chemical stimulus. Somatic cells, bacteria, and other single-cell or multicellular organisms direct their movements according to certain chemical ...

aggregation of cells is organized by periodic waves of cAMP that propagate between cells over distances as large as several centimetres. The waves are the result of a regulated production and secretion of extracellular cAMP and a spontaneous biological oscillator that initiates the waves at centers of territories.

Role in bacteria

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...

, the level of cAMP varies depending on the medium used for growth. In particular, cAMP is low when glucose is the carbon source. This occurs through inhibition of the cAMP-producing enzyme,

, as a side-effect of glucose transport into the cell. The transcription factor

cAMP receptor protein cAMP receptor protein (CRP; also known as catabolite activator protein, CAP) is a regulatory protein in bacteria. CRP protein binds cAMP, which causes a conformational change that allows CRP to bind tightly to a specific DNA site in the promote ...

(CRP) also called CAP (catabolite gene activator protein) forms a complex with cAMP and thereby is activated to bind to DNA. CRP-cAMP increases expression of a large number of genes, including some encoding

enzyme Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as products. A ...

s that can supply energy independent of glucose. cAMP, for example, is involved in the positive regulation of the

lac operon The ''lactose'' operon (''lac'' operon) is an operon required for the transport and metabolism of lactose in ''E. coli'' and many other enteric bacteria. Although glucose is the preferred carbon source for most bacteria, the ''lac'' operon allows ...

. In an environment with a low glucose concentration, cAMP accumulates and binds to the allosteric site on CRP (

), a transcription activator protein. The protein assumes its active shape and binds to a specific site upstream of the lac promoter, making it easier for RNA polymerase to bind to the adjacent promoter to start transcription of the lac operon, increasing the rate of lac operon transcription. With a high glucose concentration, the cAMP concentration decreases, and the CRP disengages from the lac operon.

Pathology

Since cyclic AMP is a second messenger and plays vital role in cell signalling, it has been implicated in various disorders but not restricted to the roles given below:

Role in human carcinoma

Some research has suggested that a deregulation of cAMP pathways and an aberrant activation of cAMP-controlled genes is linked to the growth of some cancers.

Role in prefrontal cortex disorders

Recent research suggests that cAMP affects the function of higher-order thinking in the

prefrontal cortex In mammalian brain anatomy, the prefrontal cortex (PFC) covers the front part of the frontal lobe of the cerebral cortex. The PFC contains the Brodmann areas BA8, BA9, BA10, BA11, BA12, BA13, BA14, BA24, BA25, BA32, BA44, BA45, BA46, ...

through its regulation of ion channels called hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated channels (HCN). When cAMP stimulates the HCN, the channels open, closing the brain cell to communication and thus interfering with the function of the

. This research, especially the cognitive deficits in age-related illnesses and ADHD, is of interest to researchers studying the brain. cAMP is involved in activation of trigeminocervical system leading to neurogenic inflammation and causing migraine.

Role in infectious disease agents' pathogenesis

Disrupted functioning of cAMP has been noted as one of the mechanisms of several bacterial exotoxins. They can be subgrouped into two distinct categories: * Toxins that interfere with enzymes ADP-ribosyl-transferases, and * invasive adenylate cyclases.

ADP-ribosyl-transferases related toxins

Cholera toxin Cholera toxin (also known as choleragen and sometimes abbreviated to CTX, Ctx or CT) is AB5 multimeric protein complex secreted by the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. CTX is responsible for the massive, watery diarrhea characteristic of cholera ...

is an

AB toxin The AB toxins are two-component protein complexes secreted by a number of pathogenicity, pathogenic bacteria, though there is a pore-forming AB toxin found the eggs of a snail. They can be classified as Exotoxin#Type III: intracellular, Type III t ...

that has five B subints and one A subunit. The toxin acts by the following mechanism: First, the B subunit ring of the cholera toxin binds to

GM1 GM1 (monosialotetrahexosylganglioside) the "prototype" ganglioside, is a member of the ganglio series of gangliosides which contain one sialic acid residue. GM1 has important physiological properties and impacts neuronal plasticity and repair m ...

ganglioside A ganglioside is a molecule composed of a glycosphingolipid (ceramide and oligosaccharide) with one or more sialic acids (e.g. ''N''-acetylneuraminic acid, NANA) linked on the sugar chain. NeuNAc, an acetylated derivative of the carbohydrate sia ...

s on the surface of target cells. If a cell lacks GM1 the toxin most likely binds to other types of glycans, such as Lewis Y and Lewis X, attached to proteins instead of lipids.

Uses

Forskolin Forskolin (coleonol) is a labdane diterpene produced by the plant ''Coleus barbatus'' (Blue Spur Flower). Other names include pashanabhedi, Indian coleus, makandi, HL-362, mao hou qiao rui hua. As with other members of the large diterpene class of ...

is commonly used as a tool in biochemistry to raise levels of cAMP in the study and research of

cell Cell most often refers to: * Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life Cell may also refer to: Locations * Monastic cell, a small room, hut, or cave in which a religious recluse lives, alternatively the small precursor of a monastery ...

physiology.

References

Additional images

Image:CAMP.PNG, cAMP represented in three ways Image:ATP chemical structure.png,

Adenosine triphosphate Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is an organic compound that provides energy to drive many processes in living cells, such as muscle contraction, nerve impulse propagation, condensate dissolution, and chemical synthesis. Found in all known forms of ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate Nucleotides Signal transduction Cell signaling Cyclic nucleotides