BRAINCAKEDrug Action and Enzyme Inhibitors
Many drugs work as enzyme inhibitors. An inhibitor is a molecule that binds to an enzyme and stops it catalysing its reaction.
A drug that acts as an inhibitor often has a shape similar to the substrate, so it fits into the active site. It binds there through the same kinds of interaction as the substrate (hydrogen bonds, ionic interactions, van der Waals forces), but it does not react. While it occupies the active site, the substrate cannot bind, so the reaction is blocked.
The more strongly the drug binds, and the higher its concentration compared with the substrate, the more effective the inhibition. Some inhibitors bind so strongly, sometimes by forming a covalent bond, that the enzyme is permanently inactivated.
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