acetate kinase

The growth of a bacterial mutant lacking acetate kinase has been shown to be inhibited by glucose, suggesting that the enzyme is involved in excretion of excess carbohydrate.

Its primary use is as a beverage preservative and or processing aid or sterilant (INS No. 242), and acts by inhibiting the enzymes acetate kinase and L-glutamic acid decarboxylase.

In 2006, James Ferry and Christopher House discovered that M. acetivorans uses a previously unknown metabolic pathway to metabolize carbon monoxide into methane and acetate using the well known enzymes phosphotransacetylase (PTS) and acetate kinase (ACK).

Two examples of these conserved signature indels are a 2 amino acid insertion in a conserved region of the enzyme phosphoribose diphosphate:decaprenyl-phosphate phosphoribosyltransferase and a 3 amino acid insertion in acetate kinase, both of which are found only in Corynebacterium species.