aminolevulinic acid
A drug used in photodynamic therapy that is absorbed by tumor cells; when exposed to light, it becomes active and kills the cancer cells. | ||||
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Aminolevulinic acid Definition from Medicine Dictionaries & Glossaries
Aminolevulinic acid Definition from Encyclopedia Dictionaries & Glossaries
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D-Aminolevulinic acid
D-Aminolevulinic acid (dALA or δ-ALA or 5-aminolevulinic acid) is the first compound in the porphyrin synthesis pathway, the pathway that leads to hemoglobin in mammals.
In non-photosynthetic eukaryotes such as animals, insects, fungi, and protozoa as well as the α-proteobacteria group of bacteria it is produced by the enzyme ALA synthase, from glycine and succinyl CoA. This reaction is known as the Shemin pathway.
In plants, algae, bacteria (except for the α-proteobacteria group) and archaea it is produced from glutamic acid via glutamyl-tRNA and glutamate-1-semialdehyde. The enzymes involved in this pathway are glutamyl-tRNA synthetase, glutamyl-tRNA reductase and glutamate-1-semialdehyde aminotransferase. This pathway is known as the C5 or Beale pathway.
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