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user12 user12
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12 years ago
4,4-difluoroglutamate is attracting interest among people designing anticancer drugs. They have synthesized analogs of folic acid, an important factor in DNA synthesis, in which glutamate is replaced with I. How would you predict that I will be metabolized? (Note that glutamate is readily converted to alpha-ketoglutarate which can be metabolized via the krebs cycle). Please be as specific as possible.

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wrote...
Educator
12 years ago
They have synthesized analogs of folic acid, an important factor in DNA synthesis, in which glutamate is replaced with I.

Are you sure that's how the question is stated?
user12 Author
wrote...
12 years ago
That should read cofactor, it's an important cofactor in DNA synthesis, and glutamate is replaced with I, I being 4,4-difluoroglutamate.
wrote...
Educator
12 years ago
The chemical structures of both folate and folic acid consist of three ringed structures plus one or more molecules of the amino acid glutamate (or glutamic acid). The number of glutamate molecules affects the absorption and metabolism of folate or folic acid in the body. The folate food form has many glutamate molecules attached. Enzymes in the intestine have to remove these glutamate molecules until there is only one left, before folate can be absorbed into the bloodstream.

Now what you're saying in the question is that they created a folic acid analogue where instead of glutamate, they've attached 4,4-difluoroglutamate. So, once this analogue enters the cell, 4,4-difluoroglutamate can start getting metabolized. The thing is, often fluorinated amino acids cannot be metabolized in the same way as the usual ones can. I'm guessing the fluorines would get removed and the glutamate would get metabolized in its usual way. Not sure... Neutral Face
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