A bidirectional acetate kinase that may drive flux through the ethanolamine (EA) degradation pathway under anoxic conditions found when this bacteria infects the host intestine. It may generate ATP that can be used by other enzymes (EutA and EutT) in the eut pathway. Can use GTP instead of ATP with reduced efficiency (PubMed:26448059). Might be required to correctly target EutE to bacterial microcompartments (BMC) (Probable). Required for the biogenesis of multiple mobile BMCs per cell. Might serve as an assembly hub for BMC shell proteins. Expression of eutK, eutL, eutM, eutN, eutS (eutSMNLK) in E.coli leads to formation of a single BMC; coexpression of eutQ with eutSMNLK permits E.coli to make cells with more than one mobile BMC, as is usual in vivo. EutS alone also forms BMCs, but in the presence of eutQ both BMCs and protein filaments are formed (PubMed:27063436). Expression of the eut operon allows this bacteria to use ethanolamine (EA) as a carbon, nitrogen and energy source. It relies on cobalamin (vitamin B12) both as a cofactor for the ethanolamine ammonia-lyase (EAL) activity and to induce the operon (PubMed:3045078). EA enhances bacterial survival in macrophages in a concentration-dependent manner, suggesting it is an important nutrient during infection (PubMed:29531136). acetate + ATP = acetyl phosphate + ADP Does not need divalent cations. kcat is 318 sec(-1). Amine and polyamine degradation; ethanolamine degradation. Homodimer (Probable). Interacts with the N-terminus of EutM; a probably cytoplasm-facing helix (EutM 'Val-49' to 'Gln-64') interacts with N-terminus of EutQ (PubMed:27063436). May be found on the cytoplasmic face of the BMC. Part of the 17-gene eut operon transcribed from a single promoter, induced by ethanolamine and adenosylcobalamin (AdoCbl, vitamin B12). A quadruple eutP-eutQ-eutT-eutD deletion is not impaired for aerobic growth on ethanolamine (EA) supplemented with cobalamin (vitamin B12) (PubMed:10464203). A non-polar deletion mutant grows on EA from pH 5.5 to pH 8.0, but does not grow at pH 8.5, releases increased amounts of acetaldehyde on EA plus vitamin B12 (PubMed:16585748). Does not grow on EA and tetrathionate under anoxic conditions; complemented by acetate/propionate kinases AckA, PduW or TdcD (PubMed:26448059). Only makes a single immobile BMC localized near the cell pole (PubMed:27063436). Artificial BMCs can be made in E.coli by expressing eutK, eutL, eutM, eutN, eutS (eutSMNLK). Cargo proteins can be targeted to them. The addition of eutQ to the eutSMNLK construct results in biogenesis of multiple BMCs. This can lead to the development of tailored BMCs for specific metabolic reactions. Belongs to the EutQ cupin-like family.