Glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase 4 (GPAT4)

Glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase 4 (GPAT4) is a key enzyme involved in the first step of triglyceride and phospholipid biosynthesis, acting at the endoplasmic reticulum to convert glycerol-3-phosphate and acyl-CoA into lysophosphatidic acid (LPA)[7]. This process is essential for building cell membranes and storing energy in lipid droplets. GPAT4, together with other GPAT isoforms, helps regulate physiological processes including lipid homeostasis, signal transduction, and cellular differentiation. Altered GPAT4 activity has been implicated in metabolic disorders such as obesity, hepatic steatosis, and insulin resistance. Additionally, GPAT4 shows tissue-specific roles such as in the testis, where it is linked to proper spermatogenesis and may function as a testis spermatogenesis apoptosis-related protein. The gene has numerous aliases reflecting its history in gene discovery and annotation. There are no approved drugs directly targeting GPAT4 yet, but it represents an attractive target for metabolic disease and, potentially, male infertility therapeutics[7][5][6][4].

Other names

Glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase 4GPAT4AGPAT6TSARG7UNQ551/PRO11081-AGP acyltransferase 61-acylglycerol-3-phosphate O-acyltransferase 6LPAAT-zetaDKFZp586M18191-acyl-sn-glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase zetalysophosphatidic acid acyltransferase zetatestis spermatogenesis apoptosis-related protein 7LPAATZ

Small-molecule inhibitors of GPAT4 block de novo triglyceride and phospholipid synthesis, reducing cellular lipid accumulation and potentially ameliorating metabolic syndrome, hepatic steatosis, and obesity