Specific Inhibitors

This limitation of chemical experiments is often overcome by the use of a specific inhibitor (Oremland and Capone 1988). The principle of an inhibitor technique may be, a) to block a sequence of processes at a certain step in order to observe the accumulation of an intermediate compound, b) to inhibit a certain 

Mo042- Sulfate reduction Blocks S04 reduction (depletes ATP pool) 

Acetylene Denitrification Blocks N2O N2 (also blocks nitrification) 

Acetylene N2-fixation C2H2 is reduced to C2H4 instead of N2 NH4  

DCMU Photosynthesis Blocks electron flow between Photosystem II 1 

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With the aid of cytosine permease, flucytosine reaches the fungal cell where it is converted by cytosine deaminase into 5-fluorouracil [51-21-8]. Cytosine deaminase is not present in the host, which explains the low toxicity of 5-FC. 5-Fluorouracil is then phosphorylated and incorporated into RNA and may also be converted into 5-fluorodeoxyuridine monophosphate, which is a potent and specific inhibitor of thymidylate synthetase. As a result, no more thymidine nucleotides are formed, which in turn leads to a disturbance of the DNA-synthesis. These effects produce an inhibition of the protein synthesis and cell repHcation (1,23,24). 5-Fluorouracil caimot be used as an antimycotic. It is poorly absorbed by the fungus to begin with and is also toxic for mammalian cells. 

MAO is known to occur in at least two forms, MAO A and MAO B, based on substrate selectivity, inhibition by various dmgs, and cloning experiments. Clorgyline [17780-72-2] is a specific inhibitor of MAO A, which displays a substrate specificity for NE and serotonin. Deprenyl [2323-36-6] is a selective inhibitor of MAO B, and displays a substrate preference for P-phenylethylamine and benzyl amine. Dopamine and tyramine are substrates for both enzymes. 

The biochemical basis of penicillin action continues to be an area of active investigation. Penicillins are highly specific inhibitors of enzyme(s) involved in the synthesis of the bacterial cell wall, a structure not present in mammalian cells. Three principal factors are thought to be important for effective antibacterial action by a penicillin ... 

Dennis, M.S., Lazams, R.A. Kunitz domain inhibitors of tissue factor-factor Vila. II. Potent and specific inhibitors by competitive phage selection. /. Biol. 

Polymerization inhibitors are key additives which prevent premature gelation of the adhesive. The foimulator must carefully balance shelf stability and the required cure on demand. Due to its high propagation rate, MMA is difficult to inhibit. Some comments on specific inhibitors follow. The most common inhibitor to be found in component monomers is 4-methoxyphenol, which is also called the methyl ether of hydroquinone. This inhibitor is effective only in the presence of oxygen. A mechanism has been proposed, and is illustrated in Scheme 13 [128]. 

FIGURE 10.8 A schematic diagram of the Na, K -ATPase in mammalian plasma membrane. ATP hydrolysis occurs on the cytoplasmic side of the membrane, Na ions are transported out of the cell, and ions are transported in. The transport stoichiometry is 3 Na out and 2 in per ATP hydrolyzed. The specific inhibitor ouabain (Figure 7.12) and other cardiac glycosides inhibit Na, K -ATPase by binding on the extracellular surface of the pump protein. 

The bibliography given below is classified according to the aspect of the subject mainly dealt with, but some references, of course, deal with several aspects. In addition there is a considerable body of patent literature concerning specific inhibitors. 

Specific inhibitors have also been extracted, and studied, from Cyperns esculentus (146) Artemisia vulgaris (87) Madia glomerata (26) roots of Chrysanthemum morifolium (4) Zinnia oligantha (145) and Vitis vinifera (133). 

Cardiac glycosides (CG) are potent and highly specific inhibitors of the intrinsic plasma membrane Na+/K+-ATPase, also known as the sodium pump. They modulate electrophysiological properties of the heart and its contractile functions. 

Apart from these two Vertex compounds, only one other caspase inhibitor, BDN-6556, has been used in clinical trials. This compound belongs to the class of oxamyl dipeptides and was originally developed by Idun Pharmaceuticals (taken over by Pfizer). It is the only pan-caspase inhibitor that has been evaluated in humans. BDN-6556 displays inhibitory activity against all tested human caspases. It is also an irreversible, caspase-specific inhibitor that does not inhibit other major classes of proteases, or other enzymes or receptors. The therapeutic potential of BDN-6556 was first evaluated in several animal models of liver disease because numerous publications suggested that apoptosis contributes substantially to the development of some hepatic diseases, such as alcoholic hepatitis, hepatitis B and C (HBV, HCV), non-alcoholic steato-hepatitis (NASH), and ischemia/reperfusion injury associated with liver transplant. Accordingly, BDN-6556 was tested in a phase I study. The drug was safe and... 

Acarbose and Miglitol These agents are specific inhibitors of intestinal glucosidases and reduce the conversion of sucrose and starch to glucose. Their main effect is a delay, not a complete inhibition, of the absorption of carbohydrates. Postprandial blood sugar excursions are effectively reduced. Because a small portion of the carbohydrates enters the colon, their microbial degradation frequently causes flatulence or... 

A great number of ECE-inhibitors and mixed and selective ETA and ETB receptor antagonists have been developed in the past. For specific inhibitors of ECE, however, only very limited effects on the endothelin system were found. The limited potency of ECE inhibition might be due to the generation of mature... 

The first inhibitor of NHE, amiloride, was identified in 1982. This drug is a potassium-sparing diuretic that also inhibits the sodium-calcium exchanger and the conductive Na+ channel. Not all the NHE isoforms are inhibited equally by amiloride NHE1 and 2 are responsive, NHE5 is partially responsive and NHE3, 4 and 7 are resistant. Other weak and non-specific inhibitors are clonidine and cimetidine. 

Na+/K+-ATPase. Figure 2 Specific Inhibitors of Na+/K+-ATPase. (a) Endogenous cardiac glycosides identified in mammals. Substances with a 5-membered lactone at position C17 of the steroid moiety are referred to as cardenolides, those with a 6-membered lactone as bufadienolides. (b) Palytoxin (C P NsO ) produced by corals of the genus Palythoa. 

Oxicams, e.g. piroxicam, tenoxicam, meloxicam and lornoxicam are non-specific inhibitors of COX. Like diclofenac, meloxicam inhibits COX-2 ten times more potently than COX-1. This property can be exploited clinically with doses up to 7.5 mg per day, but at higher doses COX-1-inhibition becomes clinically relevant. Since the dose of meloxicam commonly used is 15 mg daily, this agent cannot be regarded as a COX-2-selective NS AID and considerable caution needs to be exercised when making comparisons between the actions of meloxicam and those of other conventional NSAIDs. The average daily dose in anti-rheumatic therapy is 20 mg for piroxicam and tenoxicam, 7.5-15 mg for meloxicam and 12-16 mg for lornoxicam. Oxicams have long elimination half-lives (lornoxicam 3-5 h, meloxicam - 20 h, piroxicam 40 h and tenoxicam 70 h). 

There are no specific inhibitors of PLC, but compounds that interact with PIP2, e.g., neomycin can reduce its activity. However, such dtugs interfere with other signaling processes involving this lipid. The aminoster-oid l-[6-[[l 7(3-3-methoxyestra-l, 3,5(10)-trien-l 7-yl]... 

P-site ligands inhibit adenylyl cyclases by a noncompetitive, dead-end- (post-transition-state) mechanism (cf. Fig. 6). Typically this is observed when reactions are conducted with Mn2+ or Mg2+ on forskolin- or hormone-activated adenylyl cyclases. However, under- some circumstances, uncompetitive inhibition has been noted. This is typically observed with enzyme that has been stably activated with GTPyS, with Mg2+ as cation. That this is the mechanism of P-site inhibition was most clearly demonstrated with expressed chimeric adenylyl cyclase studied by the reverse reaction. Under these conditions, inhibition by 2 -d-3 -AMP was competitive with cAMP. That is, the P-site is not a site per se, but rather an enzyme configuration and these ligands bind to the post-transition-state configuration from which product has left, but before the enzyme cycles to accept new substrate. Consequently, as post-transition-state inhibitors, P-site ligands are remarkably potent and specific inhibitors of adenylyl cyclases and have been used in many studies of tissue and cell function to suppress cAMP formation. 

The inhibitors of RNA polymerase, which generates RNA from DNA, inhibit a crucial step in gene expression. Inhibition of the eukaryotic form of RNA polymerase is used in cancer chemotherapy and is also an important experimental tool. For example, actinomy-cin D binds to the guanine residues in DNA and blocks the movement of the eukaryotic RNA polymerase. Specific inhibitors of bacterial RNA polymerase can be used as antibacterial agents. Most of these inhibitors like rifamycin bind to the prokaryotic enzyme. 

Although novel mTOR inhibitors are in development, to date, only the mTORCl-specific inhibitor rapamycin (and closely related derivatives that improve... 

Several compounds that inhibit vesicular glutamate transport have been identified These include the dyes Evans Blue and Rose Bengal. In addition, the stilbene derivative 4,4 -diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2 -disulfonic acid (DEDS), a compound commonly used as a specific inhibitor of anion channels, inhibits vesicular glutamate transport. Most known inhibitors have limited use as they are membrane impermeant, with the exception of Rose Bengal. 

In addition to direct inhibition of the vesicular transport protein, storage of neurotransmitters can be reduced by dissipation of the proton electrochemical gradient. Bafilomycin (a specific inhibitor of the vacuolar H+-ATPase), as well as the proton ionophores carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP) and carbonylcyanide p-(trifluoromethoxy) phenylhy-drazone (FCCP) are used experimentally to reduce the vesicular storage of neurotransmitters. Weak bases including amphetamines and ammonium chloride are used to selectively reduce ApH. 

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