Sachin has leukemia and his doctor is thinking about giving him the chemotherapy drug purinethol, which is the best drug for this type of leukemia. TPMT is an enzyme that breaks down purinethol in the body so that it doesn't become toxic. Sachin's doctor does a genetic test and finds out he has a version of TPMT that has only partial activity compared to most people. What do you expect Sachin's doctor will do?

a. Give Sachin a higher dose of the drug

b. Give Sachin the same does everyone else gets

c. Give Sachin a lower dose of the drug

d. Determine the best dose based on Sachin's body weight

e. Give Sachin a different drug because otherwise he'll die

Question

Biology

Evelyn Yoder

11 February, 09:05

Sachin has leukemia and his doctor is thinking about giving him the chemotherapy drug purinethol, which is the best drug for this type of leukemia. TPMT is an enzyme that breaks down purinethol in the body so that it doesn't become toxic. Sachin's doctor does a genetic test and finds out he has a version of TPMT that has only partial activity compared to most people. What do you expect Sachin's doctor will do?

a. Give Sachin a higher dose of the drug

b. Give Sachin the same does everyone else gets

c. Give Sachin a lower dose of the drug

d. Determine the best dose based on Sachin's body weight

e. Give Sachin a different drug because otherwise he'll die

+1

Answers (1)

Know the Answer?

Lamont Combs · Answer 1

Give Sachin a different drug because otherwise he'll die

Explanation:

An enzyme is a globular protein that catalyses a biological chemical reaction.

Note that Options A, B, C and D does not apply, because the partial activity of TPMT in Sachin is hereditary, so, administration of varying doses (high or low) of purinethol WILL NOT improve TPMT-Purinethol metabolism which must occur to fight the leukemia.

The simple solution is to give Sachin a different drug that can be effectively metabolized by TPMT or another intracellular enzyme, so as to yield bioactive forms that will fight the leukemia.