Adenosine monophosphate, also known as AMP, is the product of adenosine condensation with a single phosphate group:
AMP can be produced during ATP synthesis by the enzyme adenylate kinase by combining two ADP molecules:
- 2 ADP → ATP + AMP
- ADP → AMP + Pi
- ATP → AMP + PPi
AMP can be regenerated to ATP as follows:
- AMP + ATP → 2 ADP (adenylate kinase in the opposite direction)
- 2 ADP + 2 Pi → 2 ATP (this step is most often performed in aerobes by the ATP synthase during oxidative phosphorylation)
In a catabolic pathway, adenosine monophosphate can be converted to uric acid, which is excreted from the body.
AMP can also exist as a cyclic structure known as cyclic AMP (or cAMP). Within certain cells the enzyme adenylate cyclase makes cAMP from ATP, and typically this reaction is regulated by hormones such as adrenaline or glucagon. cAMP plays an important role in intracellular signalling.cAMP