Prostaglandins are a class of eicosanoids, fatty acid derivatives with a variety of extremely potent actions on vertebrate tissues. They are responsible for producing fever and inflammation and its...

Prostaglandins are a class of eicosanoids, fatty acid derivatives with a variety of extremely potent actions on vertebrate tissues. They are responsible for producing fever and inflammation and its associated pain.
Prostaglandins are derived from the 20-carbon fatty acid arachidonic acid in a reaction catalyzed by the enzyme prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase. This enzyme, a cyclooxygenase, uses oxygen to convert arachidonic acid to PGG2 , the immediate precursor of many different prostaglandins .
(a) The kinetic data given below are for the reaction catalyzed by prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase. Focusing here on the first two columns, determine the Vmax and Km of the enzyme.

(b) Ibuprofen is an inhibitor of prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase. By inhibiting the synthesis of prostaglandins, ibuprofen reduces inflammation and pain. Using the data in the first and third columns of the table, determine the type of inhibition that ibuprofen exerts on prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase.

Extracted text: [Arachidonic acid] (mM) 0.5 Rate of formation of Rate of formation of PGG2 with 10 mg/mL ibuprofen (mM min¬1) 16.67 PGG2 (mM min¬1) 23.5 1.0 32.2 25.25 1.5 36.9 30.49 2.5 41.8 37.04 3.5 44.0 38.91