Image: Ken Eward
In Brief
- ATP, best known as a universal fuel inside living cells, also serves as a molecular signal that affects cell behavior.
- A leading investigator and the discoverer of ATP’s messenger role describe how ATP signals work and why they are essential to basic bodily functions and development.
- Because ATP is so ubiquitous, the molecule’s influences can vary from tissue to tissue, offering new insights into a wide range of disorders and diverse ways to treat them.
One of the first and most enduring facts most students learn in biology class is that all living cells use a small molecule called adenosine triphosphate (ATP) as fuel. That universal energy currency drives the biological reactions that allow cells to function and life to flourish—making ATP a crucial player in the biological world.
Less commonly known, however, is that what is perhaps the most produced and consumed molecule in the human body also has a completely separate but no less essential role outside of cells. A long series of discoveries has now demonstrated beyond doubt that ATP is a critical signaling molecule that allows cells and tissues throughout the body to communicate with one another. The universal fuel, in effect, serves as a common language as well.
This article was originally published with the title The Double Life of ATP.
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4 Comments
Add CommentJust for fun.. Considering the amount of chemically engineered food additives most adolesent people expose themselves to, I may venture to ask how the common language between the ATP is changed, causing individual body parts to hoard nutrients while making sense of the new syntax. After all, the social brain network ouside the body allows itself to be tricked into eating more when standard fare is made artificially rare.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisUnlike one of the two previous posts, I found the report worth thinking about. My other reason for posting is to urge those who feel driven to express an informed opinion to first consider two aspects of clear communication: common courtesy and standard spelling and punctuation.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this"tricked into eating more when standard fare is made artificially rare"- you got it! Recent research into addiction points at this very symptom. After all, the body can only react to the wrong food intake by keeping on trying to find more- even if this mens "more of the same", for want of anything better. See "youthevity.com" for human species-specific nutrition.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisPlease refer to my e-mail to Mrs DICHRISTINA dated 23/03/10 resent to editors@SciAm.com dated 27/03/10;
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