The current therapeutic strategy for patients who have been infected with HIV is a multidrug regimen known as highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAA). One type of drug used in this therapy is a nucleoside/ nucleotide analog, such as didanosine. Which of the following best describes the mechanism of action of these drugs
The nucleoside/nucleotide analogs like azidothymidine (AZT) and didanosine are incorporated into the DNA synthesized by HIV reverse transcriptase. Because they do not have a 3'-hydroxyl group, they cannot form a bond with the next nucleotide and the chain is terminated. Host cell DNA synthesis is not affected because of the nuclear DNA repair mechanisms. Ref:- Lippincott textbook of Biochemistry
They prematurely terminate the DNA synthesized by reverse transcriptase.
They prevent the hydrolysis of the viral polyprotein.
They directly bind to and inhibit reverse transcriptase.
They inhibit the synthesis of viral proteins.
Metabolism of nucleic acids