inibente

An inibente is a substance or agent that inhibits a biological process by reducing the activity of a target such as an enzyme, receptor, or transporter. In biology and medicine, inhibitors are central to regulating metabolic pathways, signal transduction, and pharmacotherapy. The term is used in several Romance languages; in English the closest equivalent is inhibitor or inhibitory compound.

Inhibitors can be reversible or irreversible. Reversible inhibitors include competitive inhibitors that bind at the active site and non-competitive or uncompetitive inhibitors that bind elsewhere or only when substrate is bound; irreversible inhibitors form covalent bonds leading to permanent inactivation. Kinetic parameters such as Km, Vmax, IC50 and Ki are used to characterize inhibitors.

In drug development, inhibitors are used to treat diseases by blocking disease-related enzymes or receptors. Examples include aspirin as an irreversible COX inhibitor; statins that inhibit HMG-CoA reductase; ACE inhibitors such as lisinopril; and protease inhibitors in antiviral therapy. Selectivity, pharmacokinetics and potential off-target effects are important considerations in inhibitor design.

See also: enzyme inhibitor, pharmacology, and drug design.