Question

The drugs Prilosec and Nexium both contain the same active ingredient. Nexium contains a single enantiomer, but Prilosec is a racemic mixture. Which of the following is probably true regarding 20 mg doses of the two different drugs?

a. both drugs will be equally effective
b. both drugs can be prepared using the same synthetic procedure
c. Nexium will be more effective than Prilosec
d. Prilosec will be more effective than Nexium

Answer 1

both drugs will be equally effective

Step-by-step explanation:

A racemic mixture is a substance that contains a 50/50 mixture of the (+) and (-) enantiomers of an optically active compound.

It is important to note that even if a drug occurs as a racemic mixture, only the biologically active enantiomer will interact with the substrate on which the drug acts. The other enantiomer present is just irrelevant. Similarly, its presence does not affect the biological activity of the active enantiomer.

Hence, both Prilosec and Nexium are both equally effective.