Competitive inhibition is a form of enzyme inhibition where binding of the inhibitor to the active site on the enzyme prevents binding of the substrate and vice versa.
Most competitive inhibitors function by binding reversibly to the active site of the enzyme. As a result, many sources state that this is this defining feature of competitive inhibitors. This, however, is a misleading oversimplification, as there are many possible mechanisms by which an enzyme may bind either the inhibitor or the substrate but never both at the same time. For example, allosteric inhibitors may display competitive, non-competitive, or uncompetitive inhibition.
Read more about Competitive Inhibition: Mechanism, Equation, Derivation
Famous quotes containing the word competitive:
“Developing the muscles of the soul demands no competitive spirit, no killer instinct, although it may erect pain barriers that the spiritual athlete must crash through.”
—Germaine Greer (b. 1939)