Biology
Mechanisms of Enzyme Inhibition: Competitive, Noncompetitive, and Uncompetitive
Quick fact
Aspirin works by irreversibly inhibiting the enzyme COX, but many drugs, like statins, use reversible competitive inhibition to lower cholesterol.
Why this is interesting
Enzymes are the body's molecular machines, but what happens when something stops them? Imagine a busy assembly line suddenly slowing down—some tools block the machine directly, others jam the parts, and some only interfere while the machine is mid-assembly. These are the three classic ways enzymes are inhibited.