A novel Escherichia coli strain allows functional analysis of guanylate kinase drug resistance and sensitivity.

Guanylate kinase is a critical enzyme in the biosynthesis of guanosine 5'-triphosphate (GTP) and dGTP and is responsible for the phosphorylation of guanosine 5'-monophosphate (GMP) and dGMP to guanosine 5'-diphosphate (GDP) and dGDP, respectively. As with many nucleotide-metabolizing enzymes, guanylate kinase is involved in antimicrobial and antineoplastic drug activation. This is due to the structural similarities of such agents with nucleobases or nucleosides that are acted upon by endogenous enzymes.