Oxamic acid is an
organic compound
Some chemical authorities define an organic compound as a chemical compound that contains a carbon–hydrogen or carbon–carbon bond; others consider an organic compound to be any chemical compound that contains carbon. For example, carbon-co ...
with the formula . It is a white, water-soluble solid. It is the mono
amide
In organic chemistry, an amide, also known as an organic amide or a carboxamide, is a chemical compound, compound with the general formula , where R, R', and R″ represent any group, typically organyl functional group, groups or hydrogen at ...
of
oxalic acid
Oxalic acid is an organic acid with the systematic name ethanedioic acid and chemical formula , also written as or or . It is the simplest dicarboxylic acid. It is a white crystalline solid that forms a colorless solution in water. Its name i ...
. Oxamic acid inhibits
lactate dehydrogenase A
Lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA) is an enzyme which in humans is encoded by the ''LDHA'' gene. It is a monomer of lactate dehydrogenase, which exists as a tetramer. The other main subunit is lactate dehydrogenase B (LDHB).
Function
Lactate deh ...
. The
active site
In biology and biochemistry, the active site is the region of an enzyme where substrate molecules bind and undergo a chemical reaction. The active site consists of amino acid residues that form temporary bonds with the substrate, the ''binding s ...
of
lactate dehydrogenase
Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH or LD) is an enzyme found in nearly all living cells. LDH catalyzes the conversion of pyruvic acid, pyruvate to lactic acid, lactate and back, as it converts NAD+ to NADH and back. A dehydrogenase is an enzyme that t ...
(LDH) is closed off once oxamic acid attaches to the
LDH-
NADH
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) is a coenzyme central to metabolism. Found in all living cells, NAD is called a dinucleotide because it consists of two nucleotides joined through their phosphate groups. One nucleotide contains an ade ...
complex, effectively inhibiting it.
Oxamic acid also has applications in
polymer
A polymer () is a chemical substance, substance or material that consists of very large molecules, or macromolecules, that are constituted by many repeat unit, repeating subunits derived from one or more species of monomers. Due to their br ...
chemistry. It increases the
water solubility
An aqueous solution is a solution in which the solvent is water. It is mostly shown in chemical equations by appending (aq) to the relevant chemical formula. For example, a solution of table salt, also known as sodium chloride (NaCl), in water w ...
of certain polymers, including
polyester
Polyester is a category of polymers that contain one or two ester linkages in every repeat unit of their main chain. As a specific material, it most commonly refers to a type called polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Polyesters include some natura ...
,
epoxide
In organic chemistry, an epoxide is a cyclic ether, where the ether forms a three-atom ring: two atoms of carbon and one atom of oxygen. This triangular structure has substantial ring strain, making epoxides highly reactive, more so than other ...
, and acrylic upon binding with them.
See also
*
Oxamate
Oxamate is the carboxylate anion of oxamic acid. Oxamate has a molecular formula of C2H2NO3− and is an isosteric form of pyruvate. Salts and esters of oxamic acid are known collectively as oxamates.
Oxamate is a competitive inhibitor of th ...
, the conjugate base of oxamic acid
References
Carboxamides
Carboxylic acids
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