Background:
Phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate 5-kinase type-1 alpha is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the PIP5K1A gene. Catalyzes the phosphorylation of phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PtdIns4P) to form phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PtdIns(4,5)P2). PtdIns(4,5)P2 is involved in a variety of cellular processes and is the substrate to form phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate (PtdIns(3,4,5)P3), another second messenger. The majority of PtdIns(4,5)P2 is thought to occur via type I phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate 5-kinases given the abundance of PtdIns4P.