Geranyl pyrophosphate

Geranyl pyrophosphate (GPP), also known as geranyl diphosphate (GDP), is the pyrophosphate ester of the terpenoid geraniol.

It is a precursor to many thousands of natural products.

[1] GPP is an intermediate in the isoprenoid biosynthesis pathway that produces longer prenyl chains such as farnesyl pyrophosphate and geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate as well as many terpenes.

[2] It can be prepared in the laboratory from geraniol.

[3] Intracellularly produced GPP has been shown to be toxic to the bacteria E. coli at moderate doses.

Skeletal formula
Skeletal formula
Ball-and-stick model
Ball-and-stick model
Isopentenyl pyrophosphate (IPP) and dimethylallyl pyrophosphate (DMAPP) are condensed by geranyl pyrophosphate synthase ( dimethylallyltranstransferase ) to produce geranyl pyrophosphate (GPP) and pyrophosphate. The carbon skeletons of DMAPP and IPP have been colored to indicate their location in GPP.