About this Research Topic
Sulfur is an essential element of life and sulfur-related plant and health research is thriving. The oxidative branch of sulfur metabolism, however, only has recently come into the focus of biomedical researchers. These sulfation pathways are grouped around catalytic sulfate activation, sulfate transfer, and sulfate removal. There is so much more to sulfation pathways: The systemic transition of sulfated hormone precursors, the peripheral expression of specialized transporters to get sulfated metabolites in and out of the cell, and exciting enzymology of the various sulfation enzymes and their transcriptional co-regulation. Research into sulfation pathways has always benefited from interdisciplinary exchange because different components of these pathways are conserved in some model organisms, but not in others.
This Research Topic aims to bring together current knowledge in the field of sulfation pathways. Major questions revolve around the regulation of individual sulfation and de-sulfation pathways - and how to avoid vicious cycling here. The promiscuous, but still specific, substrate recognition of sulfotransferases remains puzzling, as are the intricate phylogenetic relationships within families of different sulfation genes. Moreover, we still don’t know how many more sulfated metabolites will be discovered - doubly-sulfated steroids and vitamin D sulfates are examples of sulfo-metabolites that have recently come into focus for biomedical research.
How do we tackle these and other questions? We certainly need further analytical advances to detect and quantify sulfo-conjugates such as peptides, steroids or plant secondary metabolites. Novel chemo-synthetic approaches are also needed to obtain good-purity sulfated nucleotides, steroids, and polysaccharides; all to be used in biochemical assays and/or mass spectrometry reference material. Finally, we need to embrace state-of-the-art structural biology, with synthetic biology such as flux modelling as well as comparative approaches to advance the knowledge in the fascinating field of Sulfation Pathways.
For this Research Topic on sulfation pathways, we invite the submission of Original Research, Methods, Review, Mini Review and Perspective articles. All manuscripts will undergo peer review.
Topics of contributions may include, but are not limited to:
• Dynamics of sulfation and de-sulfation processes
• Energetics and enzymology of the protein components, down to a molecular level
• New and emerging sulfated metabolites, such as steroid disulfates or vitamin D sulfate
• Systems research and phylogeny of sulfation pathways
• Sulfate metabolism in model organisms
• Links to other metabolic pathways, such as nucleotide signaling or sulfo-lipids
• Analytical methods & synthesis of reference material
This Research topic will highlight important and recent research directions in the focused and growing field of sulfation pathways, providing an ideal platform for scientific dialog and the exchange of ideas.
Research Topic Cover
Similar to many other metabolic pathways, we depict Sulfation Pathways using bundles of arrows, forming cascades, loops, and networks. This is because we actually study metabolic one-way roads, biochemical loops, and roundabouts, as well as intricate junctions with other pathways. Thinking of mystic ornamental knots from the Book of Kells and the spaghetti junction J6 of the M6 in Birmingham, artist John Gage created this cover art for the Sulfation Pathways Research Topic using a combination of hand drawing, painting, and digital media. The artist was fascinated by the fractal similarity of the biochemical microscopic realm and the macroscopic world around us. John indulged in various layers of circle and loop structures, using a warm pallet that contains some sulfuric yellows; also drawing inspiration from the intensely colorful artworks by Sonia and Robert Delaunay.
Jon Wolf Mueller
This Research Topic aims to bring together current knowledge in the field of sulfation pathways. Major questions revolve around the regulation of individual sulfation and de-sulfation pathways - and how to avoid vicious cycling here. The promiscuous, but still specific, substrate recognition of sulfotransferases remains puzzling, as are the intricate phylogenetic relationships within families of different sulfation genes. Moreover, we still don’t know how many more sulfated metabolites will be discovered - doubly-sulfated steroids and vitamin D sulfates are examples of sulfo-metabolites that have recently come into focus for biomedical research.
How do we tackle these and other questions? We certainly need further analytical advances to detect and quantify sulfo-conjugates such as peptides, steroids or plant secondary metabolites. Novel chemo-synthetic approaches are also needed to obtain good-purity sulfated nucleotides, steroids, and polysaccharides; all to be used in biochemical assays and/or mass spectrometry reference material. Finally, we need to embrace state-of-the-art structural biology, with synthetic biology such as flux modelling as well as comparative approaches to advance the knowledge in the fascinating field of Sulfation Pathways.
For this Research Topic on sulfation pathways, we invite the submission of Original Research, Methods, Review, Mini Review and Perspective articles. All manuscripts will undergo peer review.
Topics of contributions may include, but are not limited to:
• Dynamics of sulfation and de-sulfation processes
• Energetics and enzymology of the protein components, down to a molecular level
• New and emerging sulfated metabolites, such as steroid disulfates or vitamin D sulfate
• Systems research and phylogeny of sulfation pathways
• Sulfate metabolism in model organisms
• Links to other metabolic pathways, such as nucleotide signaling or sulfo-lipids
• Analytical methods & synthesis of reference material
This Research topic will highlight important and recent research directions in the focused and growing field of sulfation pathways, providing an ideal platform for scientific dialog and the exchange of ideas.
Research Topic Cover
Similar to many other metabolic pathways, we depict Sulfation Pathways using bundles of arrows, forming cascades, loops, and networks. This is because we actually study metabolic one-way roads, biochemical loops, and roundabouts, as well as intricate junctions with other pathways. Thinking of mystic ornamental knots from the Book of Kells and the spaghetti junction J6 of the M6 in Birmingham, artist John Gage created this cover art for the Sulfation Pathways Research Topic using a combination of hand drawing, painting, and digital media. The artist was fascinated by the fractal similarity of the biochemical microscopic realm and the macroscopic world around us. John indulged in various layers of circle and loop structures, using a warm pallet that contains some sulfuric yellows; also drawing inspiration from the intensely colorful artworks by Sonia and Robert Delaunay.
Jon Wolf Mueller
Keywords: Sulfur, sulfation, sulfurylation, sulfonation, sulfate activation, sulfotransfer, desulfation, steroid sulfate
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