Inositol hexakisphosphate kinases (IP6Ks) phosphorylate inositol hexakisphosphate (InsP 6 ) to yield 5-diphosphoinositol pentakisphosphate (5-[PP]-InsP 5 or InsP 7 ). In this study, we report the characterization of a selective inhibitor, N 2 -(m-(trifluoromethy)lbenzyl) N 6 -(p-nitrobenzyl)purine (TNP), for these enzymes. TNP dose-dependently and selectively inhibited the activity of IP6K in vitro and inhibited InsP 7 and InsP 8 synthesis in vivo without affecting levels of other inositol phosphates. TNP did not inhibit either human or yeast Vip/PPIP5K, a newly described InsP 6 /InsP 7 1/3-kinase. Overexpression of IP6K1, -2, or -3 in cells rescued TNP inhibition of InsP 7 synthesis. TNP had no effect on the activity of a large number of protein kinases, suggesting that it is selective for IP6Ks. TNP reversibly reduced InsP 7 /InsP 8 levels. TNP in combination with genetic studies was used to implicate the involvement of two pathways for synthesis of InsP 8 in yeast. TNP induced a fragmented vacuole phenotype in yeast, consistent with inhibition of Kcs1, a Saccharomyces cerevisiae IP6K. In addition, it also inhibited insulin release from Min6 cells in a dose-dependent manner further implicating InsP 7 in this process. TNP thus provides a means of selectively and rapidly modulating cellular InsP 7 levels, providing a new and versatile tool to study the biological function and metabolic relationships of inositol pyrophosphates.Inositol(1,4,5)trisphosphate (Ins(1,4,5)P 3 ) 2 is the cytosolic product of inositol phospholipid-specific phospholipase Cs and serves multiple biological functions. In higher eukaryotes, it regulates Ca 2ϩ release from intracellular stores via binding to Ins(1,4,5)P 3 -specific receptors located in the endoplasmic reticulum. In addition, in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and all other eukaryotes that have been studied, Ins(1,4,5)P 3 also undergoes complex metabolism to generate a series of inositol polyphosphates with diverse functions (1, 2). Inositol hexakisphosphate (InsP 6 ) can be synthesized in inositol phospholipid-specific phospholipase C/Ins(1,4,5)P 3 -mediated pathways in most, if not all, eukaryotes. InsP 6 is further metabolized by the inositol hexakisphosphate kinases (IHPKs or IP6Ks), which add a pyrophosphate moiety at the 5-position to generate 5-[PP]-InsP 5 or 5-InsP 7 . Dictyostelium discoideum and S. cerevisiae, each possess one IP6K gene product designated Kcs1 in yeast (3, 4). In mammals, three IP6Ks have been identified (5, 6). In addition, a second InsP 6 /5-InsP 7 kinase, designated Vip/PPIP5K, has been identified in yeast (7) and mammalian cells (8,9). This kinase is distinct from IP6K/Kcs1 in that it phosphorylates the 1/3-position of InsP 6 and 5-[PP]-InsP 5 (10).Insights into the biological functions of inositol pyrophosphates have come from genetic studies in yeast and by manipulating expression of inositol polyphosphate kinases in mammalian cells. More recently, yeast mutants failing to synthesize inositol pyro phosphate molecules have been found to be impaired in s...