Phosphoramidon is a chemical compound derived from cultures of Streptomyces tanashiensis. It is an inhibitor

Enzyme inhibitor

An enzyme inhibitor is a molecule that binds to enzymes and decreases their activity. Since blocking an enzyme's activity can kill a pathogen or correct a metabolic imbalance, many drugs are enzyme inhibitors. They are also used as herbicides and pesticides...

 of the enzyme

Enzyme

Enzymes are proteins that catalyze chemical reactions. In enzymatic reactions, the molecules at the beginning of the process, called substrates, are converted into different molecules, called products. Almost all chemical reactions in a biological cell need enzymes in order to occur at rates...

 thermolysin

Thermolysin

Thermolysin is a thermostable neutral metalloproteinase enzyme produced by the gram-positive bacteria Bacillus thermoproteolyticus. It requires one zinc ion for enzyme activity and four calcium ions for structural stability. Thermolysin specifically catalyzes the hydrolysis of peptide bonds...

, a membrane metallo-endopeptidase inhibitor, and an endothelin converting enzyme inhibitor. Chemically, talopeptin differs from its closely related peptidase inhibitor talopeptin

Talopeptin

Talopeptin is a chemical compound derived from cultures of Streptomyces. It is a known reversible inhibitor of thermolysin and is expected to inhibit other metalloproteinases. Chemically, talopeptin differs from its closely related peptidase inhibitorphosphoramidon by a single stereocenter....

 by a single stereocenter.

Because of its enzyme inhibitory properties, phosphoramidon is widely used as a biochemical tool.

External Links

• The MEROPS
  Merops
  Merops may refer to:* Merops , a genus of bee-eaters.* MEROPS, an on-line database for peptidases.It may also refer to several figures from Greek mythology:* King of Ethiopia, husband of Clymene, who lay with Helios and bore Phaethon...
  
  online database for peptidases and their inhibitors: Phosphoramidon