The synthesis of teichoic acid IV. On the regulation of cytidine 5′-diphosphateglycerol concentration

The partial purification of a cytidine 5′-diphosphateglycerol pyrophosphatase from Bacillus subtilis (NCTC 3610) is described. The K_m for cytidine 5′-diphosphateglycerol is 1.6·10⁻³M. It is suggested that the function of this enzyme is to prevent the accumulation of cytidine 5′-diphosphateglycerol under conditions where the rate of teichoic acid synthesis is decreased. A similar mechanism is suggested for the control in vivo of the concentration of some other nucleoside diphosphate sugars.