4 - Pharmacokinetics Flashcards

1
Q

What is meant by pharmacokinetics?

A

what the body does to the drug
how the drug is absorbed, metabolised and excreted by the body
the journey of a drug through the body

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

State the five stages of the journey of a drug through the body.

A
Administration
Absorption
Distribution
Metabolism
Excretion
(Voiding)

(ADME)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What is the usual route of an ingested drug?

A

enters GI tract, gets absorbed in the SI, goes through the liver via hepatic portal system before entering the systemic circulation (some may go into the bile and back to the liver again)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What is the difference between enteral and parenteral administration?

A

Enteral – using the GI tract

Parenteral – everything except the GI tract

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What are the advantages of intravenous administration?

A

It gives rapid systemic exposure (onset) and a high bioavailability

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

State the two ways in which drug molecules move around the body.

A

Bulk Flow Transfer – in the bloodstream it will move in bulk to the tissues
Diffusion Transfer – molecule by molecule over short distances

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

State four methods by which drugs can cross lipid membrane barriers.

A

Diffusion through the lipid membrane (if appropriately lipophilic)
Diffusion through aqueous pores
Carrier molecules
Pinocytosis

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Finish the sentence: most drugs are either …… or …….

A

Weak acids or weak bases

exist in ionised (polar) or non-ionised (non-polar) form

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Which factors affect the ratio of ionised to non-ionised drug (the dynamic equilibrium)?

A

pH of the environment

pKa of the molecules

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Is aspirin acidic or basic?

What is its pKa?

A

acidic

pKa of 3.4

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Describe and explain the difference in absorption of aspirin in the stomach and the small intestine.

A

Stomach pH of around 1
The pH of the stomach is lower than the pKa of aspirin, the equilibrium of the aspirin is shifted towards the unionised state
So in the stomach, aspirin mainly exists in the unionised state and is rapidly absorbed

In the small intestines which has a much more basic pH (which is greater than the pKa of aspirin)
So aspirin in the small intestine is mainly ionised and hence absorption is SLOWER in the small intestine

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What is ion trapping?

A

When ionised aspirin enters the systemic circulation, it is in an aqueous environment. However, it will not be able to move into the tissues and hence is ‘trapped’

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

State four factors affecting drug distribution.

A

Regional blood flow
Extracellular binding (plasma-protein binding)
Capillary permeability
Localisation in tissue

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What percentage of acidic drugs tend to bind to plasma proteins?

A

50-80%

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

In which state can albumin bind to drugs? Ionised or non-ionised?

A

Both ionised and unionised

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

State three types of capillary architecture.

A

Continuous
Fenestrated
Discontinuous

17
Q

Give a broad example of localisation of a drug in tissue.

A

Lipophilic drugs tend to localise in fatty tissues e.g. brain and testes

18
Q

What are the two main routes of drug excretion?

A

Kidneys (mainly)
Liver
(other methods include exhalation and through sweating)

19
Q

What happens to drugs in the kidneys that means that many drugs are excreted through them?

A

converting the drug into something water soluble

20
Q

How are drugs processed and excreted through the liver (generally)?

A

concentrated in the bile, which is secreted into the small intestines

21
Q

What types of molecule tend to get excreted via the biliary route?

A

Large molecule weight molecules

The liver allows concentration of large molecular weight molecules that are very lipophilic

22
Q

What happens to drug-protein complexes at the glomerulus?

A

They are not filtered into the filtrate

23
Q

Where does active secretion of acids and bases occur in the nephron?

A

Proximal convoluted tubule

24
Q

What can happen to lipid soluble drugs in the proximal and distal convoluted tubules?

A

They could be reabsorbed

25
Q

Compare how you would take aspirin to cure a headache to how you would take it in the treatment of Parkinson’s

A
  • take it in its double form for an immediate effect
  • for a prolonged effect, take it in its insoluble form (with a coating that is only broken down in the conditions of the small intestine)
26
Q

Why might treatment with I.V. sodium bicarbonate increase aspirin excretion?

A
  • increase in pH of the blood
  • increase the amount of aspirin that is ionised
    (ionised aspirin = more water-soluble and less lipid-soluble)
  • less aspirin is reabsorbed in the proximal and distal tubules
  • increase in the rate of aspirin excretion
27
Q

What is the main purpose of the active transport systems that secrete drugs into bile? How do drugs use this mechanism?

A

They are meant to be for the active transport of glucuronides and bile acids into the bile but drugs can hitch a ride on this mechanism

28
Q

What is a potential problem with biliary excretion of xenobiotics?

A

Enterohepatic cycling – it can become reabsorbed and return to the liver via the enterohepatic circulation
This leads to drug persistence

29
Q

Define bioavailability.

A

The proportion of the administered drug that is available within the body to exert its pharmacological effect

30
Q

Define apparent volume of distribution.

A

(theoretical mathematical value)

The volume in which a drug appears to be distributed – an indicator of pattern of distribution

31
Q

Define biological half-life.

A

The time taken for the concentration of a drug (in blood/plasma) to fall to half its original value

32
Q

Define clearance.

A

The volume of plasma cleared of a drug per unit time

linked to excretion

33
Q

Define First-Order kinetics.

A

When the rate of drug excretion is proportional to the concentration of drug remaining within the body
Log of drug concentration is proportional to time
Depends on the concentration of the drug in the body at any given time

34
Q

How is the volume of distribution derived from a first-order kinetic graph?

A

dose divided by the initial concentration of the drug in plasma

35
Q

State the equation for half-life in first-order kinetics reactions.

A

T1/2 = Vd x log(2)/Cl
(NOTE: log(2)=0.7)
Vd = volume of distribution
Cl = clearance

36
Q

Define Zero-Order kinetics.

A

A constant amount of drug is removed from the body per unit time
(it is independent of the concentration of the drug in the body)

37
Q

How is a zero-order kinetics graph drawn differently to that of a first-order kinetics graph?

A

y-axis [drug] is linear/analogue (rather than logarithmic)

38
Q

What does zero-order kinetics suggest about the enzymes involved?

A

It suggests that the enzymes are saturated

Once the enzymes are saturated, the rate of removal of a drug peaks and remains constant

39
Q

Which order kinetics do most drugs follow?

A

first-order