ReviewJournal of molecular evolution2014
Why can't vertebrates synthesize trehalose?
Review in Journal of molecular evolution, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 37 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
37 citing papers in PubMed, 90 citations in OpenAlex.
- Anhydrobiosis as a Model of Aging and Longevity: The Role of Autophagy and Metabolism in Yeast Cells.Microbial ecology · 2026Review
- Microwave-Assisted Dehydration, Non-Cryogenic Storage, and Rehydration of Spermatozoa and Germinal Vesicles.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2026Article
- Article
- Integrated transcriptome and metabolome analyses unraveled critical roles of small intestine during the weaning period of Vespertilio sinensis.BMC genomics · 2025Article
- Effects of Orally Delivered Double-Stranded RNA ofInsects · 2025Article
- Developing the trehalose biosynthesis pathway as an antifungal drug target.npj antimicrobials and resistance · 2025Review
- The stress-protectant molecule trehalose mediates fluconazole tolerance inAntimicrobial agents and chemotherapy · 2025Article
- Inhibition of heme-thiolate monooxygenase CYP1B1 prevents hepatic stellate cell activation and liver fibrosis by accumulating trehalose.Science translational medicine · 2024Article
- Effect of trehalose on mortality and disease severity in ICU-admitted patients: Protocol for a triple-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial.Contemporary clinical trials communications · 2024Article
- Regulation of forager honey bee appetite independent of the glucose-insulin signaling pathway.Frontiers in insect science · 2024Article
- The osmoregulated metabolism of trehalose contributes to production of type 1 fimbriae and bladder colonization by extraintestinalFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2024Article
- Glucose metabolism in the pathogenic free-living amoebae: Tempting targets for treatment development.Chemical biology & drug design · 2024Review
- Article
- Article
- Synthesis and Application of Trehalose Materials.JACS Au · 2022Review
- Squalene-Based Nano-Assemblies Improve the Pro-Autophagic Activity of Trehalose.Pharmaceutics · 2022Article
- The involvement of theVirulence · 2021Article
- Combinatorial Effects of Protective Agents on Survival Rate of the Yeast Starter,Microorganisms · 2021Article
- Hepatoprotective Effect of Trehalose: Insight into Its Mechanisms of Action.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2021Article
- Salt Stress Response of Sulfolobus acidocaldarius Involves Complex Trehalose Metabolism Utilizing a Novel Trehalose-6-Phosphate Synthase (TPS)/Trehalose-6-Phosphate Phosphatase (TPP) Pathway.Applied and environmental microbiology · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The non-reducing disaccharide trehalose is a singular molecule, which has been strictly conserved throughout evolution in prokaryotes (bacteria and archaea), lower eukaryotes, plants, and invertebrates, but is absent in vertebrates and-more specifically-in mammals. There are notable differences regarding the pivotal roles played by trehalose among distantly related organisms as well as in the specific metabolic pathways of trehalose biosynthesis and/or hydrolysis, and the regulatory mechanisms that control trehalose expression genes and enzymatic activities. The success of trehalose compared with that of other structurally related molecules is attributed to its exclusive set of physical properties, which account for its physiological roles and have also promoted important biotechnological applications. However, an intriguing question still remains: why are vertebrates in general, and mammals in particular, unable (or have lost the capacity) to synthesize trehalose? The search for annotated genomes of vertebrates reveals the absence of any functional trehalose synthase gene. Indeed, this is also true for the human genome, which contains, however, two genes encoding for isoforms of the hydrolytic activity (trehalase). Although we still lack a convincing answer, this striking difference might reflect the divergent evolutionary lineages followed by invertebrates and vertebrates. Alternatively, some clinical data point to trehalose as a toxic molecule when stored inside the human body.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.