The reaction this enzyme catalyses represents the first committed step in the production of all inositol-containing compounds, including phospholipids, either directly or by salvage.

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Baker's yeast), the transcriptional regulation of the INO1 gene encoding inositol-3-phosphate synthase has been studied in detail and its expression is sensitive to the availability of phospholipid precursors as well as growth phase.

[1] The regulation of the structural gene encoding 1L-myo-inositol-1-phosphate synthase has also been analyzed at the transcriptional level in the aquatic angiosperm, Spirodela polyrrhiza (Giant duckweed) and the halophyte, Mesembryanthemum crystallinum (Common ice plant).

[2] In prokaryotes, myo-D-inositol phosphate synthase was discovered by Bachhawat and Mande in 1999 (reported in Journal of Molecular Biology).

The existence of inositol in prokaryotes is not extensive, but the discovery of this enzyme first in Mycobacterium tuberculosis, nucleated activity towards finding its inhibitors.