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Pill

Theme C - Interaction &  Interdependence

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Direct Hit

Theme A - Unity & diversity

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Page Facing Up

Theme B - Form & Function

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Keycap Digit One

Theme D - Continuity & Change

<ul>
	<li>Happens when an inhibitor binds reversibly to an enzyme&#39;s active site.</li>
	<li>As long as the inhibitor stays bound, the enzyme&#39;s usual substrate can&#39;t bind.</li>
	<li>The result? The enzyme can&#39;t do its job (catalyse its reaction).</li>
</ul>

💡 Fun Fact: Imagine a parking spot that both a sports car (substrate) and a truck (inhibitor) want to use. If the truck parks there, the sports car can&#39;t fit. But, if the truck drives away, the sports car can park. Similarly, enzymes have &ldquo;parking spots&rdquo; called active sites. If the inhibitor gets there first, the substrate can&#39;t bind.

<ul>
	<li>They&#39;re like sneaky doppelgangers! They look a lot like the enzyme&#39;s substrate.</li>
	<li>Unlike the substrate, they don&#39;t turn into products, so they hang around longer.</li>
</ul>

💡 Real-World Analogy: Think of the substrate as a key that fits perfectly into a lock (the active site) and opens a door. The competitive inhibitor is like a fake key that fits the lock but can&#39;t open the door.

<ul>
	<li>More inhibitors = More inhibition.</li>
	<li>Few inhibitors + Lots of substrate = Less inhibition, because the substrate usually gets to the active site first.</li>
</ul>

💡 Think of it like a race: If there are more racers (substrates) than obstacles (inhibitors), the chances of a racer winning increase!

<ul>
	<li>Used for high blood cholesterol treatment.</li>
	<li>Statins are competitive inhibitors for the enzyme HMG-CoA reductase.</li>
	<li>This enzyme is part of the process that makes cholesterol in the liver.</li>
	<li>If you slow down this enzyme with statins, the body makes less cholesterol.</li>
</ul>

💡 Quick Insight: The importance of dosage! Too much, and you might decrease cholesterol too much; too little, and it might not work effectively.

<ul>
	<li>Sarin
	<ul>
		<li>A competitive inhibitor of acetylcholinesterase.</li>
		<li>Important for our nervous system.</li>
		<li>Initially an insecticide, but later used as a chemical weapon.</li>
		<li>Question: Should the chemist who discovered it, Gerhard Schrader, be called &quot;the father of nerve agents&quot;?</li>
	</ul>
	</li>
	<li>Fritz Haber
	<ul>
		<li>1918 Nobel Prize winner for ammonia fertilizer production.</li>
		<li>But, also promoted using chlorine gas as a weapon in WWI.</li>
		<li>His stance: Scientists serve the world in peace but serve their country in war.</li>
		<li>Question: Should such contributions be recognized given their dual nature?</li>
	</ul>
	</li>
</ul>

💡 Deep Dive: These real-world examples show how science can be used for both beneficial and harmful purposes. It raises the question of ethics in scientific discoveries and how they&#39;re applied.

<ul>
	<li>Competitive inhibitors block enzyme action by mimicking their substrate.</li>
	<li>The concentration of inhibitors and substrates can impact how much inhibition occurs.</li>
	<li>Real-world examples, like statins, show competitive inhibition in action.</li>
	<li>Ethical considerations arise when scientific discoveries have both good and potentially harmful uses.</li>
</ul>

💭 Thought to Ponder: As budding biologists, how can we ensure our discoveries lead to betterment and not detriment?

Theme C - Interaction & Interdependence

Understanding Competitive Inhibition And Its Real-World Implications

Table of content

Basics of competitive inhibition 🎯

How competitive inhibitors work 🔬

Inhibitor concentration matters 📊