Imatinib is a drug that is used to treat leukemia. It dissolves easily in water

Question

Imatinib is a drug that is used to treat leukemia. It dissolves easily in water and has been found to build to very high concentrations in diseased cells.

Recall that we discussed four ways materials move across membranes: 1) simple diffusion, 2) facilitated diffusion, 3) active transport, and 4) endo/exocytosis. Think about which of those methods might be used by imatinib and which could not be used.

In terms of how imatinib gets into cells, which of the four transport methods can you eliminate and why?

Think especially about whether this chemical is hydrophobic vs. hydrophilic and the way fact that it builds to high concentrations.  

Explanation / Answer

Since imatinib dissolves easily in water, it is hydrophilic, not hydrophobic. So, diffusion process is not applicable for this drug.

The very high concentration of imatinib in leukemia cells can only be explained by the process of active transport, using energy in the form of ATP and also, specialised carrier proteins (pumps) that can transport a large number of hydrophilic imatinib into yhe inside of leukemia cells.

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