Meggátoló

Meggátoló is a Hungarian term used to describe something that hinders, blocks or prevents a process or activity. In scientific contexts it refers to substances or factors that reduce the rate or extent of a target’s action, such as an enzyme, a chemical reaction or a signaling pathway. The concept is common in biochemistry, pharmacology and toxicology, and the term is closely related to gátlók (inhibitors).

In enzymology and pharmacology, meggátoló denotes inhibitors. They can be reversible or irreversible and are classified by mechanism: competitive inhibitors compete with the substrate for the enzyme’s active site; noncompetitive inhibitors bind to an allosteric site and reduce activity without blocking substrate binding; uncompetitive inhibitors bind only to the enzyme–substrate complex; irreversible inhibitors form covalent bonds with the enzyme, permanently inactivating it. These inhibitors are used in research to study enzyme function and in medicine to block disease-related enzymes or pathways.

In chemistry and materials science, meggátolók include substances that prevent or slow undesired reactions, such as polymerization inhibitors and corrosion inhibitors. Antioxidants can act as radical inhibitors by scavenging reactive species and slowing oxidative processes.

The term also appears in everyday language to describe factors that hinder progress, for example bureaucratic or logistical obstacles acting as meggátolók in a project. Overall, meggátoló denotes an agent or factor that reduces activity, slows a process or prevents an outcome.