The Pentose Phosphate Pathway: A Vital Role in Rapidly Dividing Cells, Why would you expect to find the pentose phosphate pathway occurring at rapid rates in the bone marrow, where cells are dividing at higher rates than other areas of the body?

The Pentose Phosphate Pathway: A Vital Role in Rapidly Dividing Cells

The pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) is a metabolic pathway that is essential for the production of metabolic energy and the synthesis of some essential molecules. It is particularly important in rapidly dividing cells, such as those found in the bone marrow. This is due to the increased rate of energy production and metabolic building blocks required for cell division and growth (Nakayama et al., 2018; Prasad et al., 2021). The PPP is a unique metabolic pathway, in that it produces both NADPH and ribose-5-phosphate, two molecules that are essential for the protection of cells from oxidative damage and for the production of DNA and RNA, respectively (Kapoor et al., 2016; Konstantinidou et al., 2019). The PPP is an important part of the metabolic process in all cells, but it is especially critical in rapidly dividing cells, such as those found in the bone marrow. This is due to the increased rate of energy production and metabolic building blocks required for cell division and growth (Mo et al., 2020; Al-Hassan et al., 2021). Additionally, the high rate of cell division and growth also leads to increased oxidative stress, and the PPP provides a source of NADPH to combat this oxidative damage (Lin et al., 2017; Chen et al., 2018). The PPP is thus essential for the protection of cells in rapidly dividing tissues, such as those found in the bone marrow. Cont…..