NRTIs function as "prodrugs," meaning they are inactive upon entry and require by host cell kinases to become active triphosphate metabolites. Once activated, their mechanism follows two critical steps:
They compete with endogenous deoxynucleotides (like dTTP or dCTP) for binding to the viral Reverse Transcriptase (RT) enzyme . nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor
The Role and Mechanism of Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NRTIs) NRTIs function as "prodrugs," meaning they are inactive