Nucleoside Diphosphate Kinase Escalates A-to-C Mutations in MutT-Deficient Strains of Escherichia coli

Nucleoside diphosphate kinase (NDK), a ubiquitous enzyme, is known for its critical role in homeostasis of cellular nucleotide pools. However, NDK has now emerged as a molecule with pleiotropic effects in DNA repair, protein phosphorylation, gene expression, tumor metastasis, development, and pathogen virulence and persistence inside the host. In this study, we reveal an unexpected role of NDK in genome instability because of its activity in converting 8-O-dGDP to 8-O-dGTP. This observation has important consequences in escalating A-to-C mutations in Escherichia coli . The severity of NDK in enhancing these mutations may be higher in the organisms challenged with high oxidative stress, which promotes 8-O-dGDP/8-O-dGTP production.