Lecture 14: Introduction to pharmacology

Question 1

What is pharmacology?

What is toxicology?

Answer 1

Is the study of therapeutic drugs and their design

Is the study of poisoning - examine the harmful effects of drugs in human, animals and the environment

Question 2

What is a drug?

Where do they come from?

Answer 2

Is a chemical that changes the behaviour or function of an individual system, organ, tissue or invading organisms
- Drugs are sourced from plants and animals as well as being synthesised in the laboratory

Question 3

What are the four types of physiological receptors?

Answer 3

1. membrane proteins coupled to ion channels
2. membrane proteins coupled to G proteins
3. membrane proteins which couple to DNA
4. membrane proteins coupled to enzymes

Question 4

What are physiological receptors?

Answer 4

• Are signalling molecules
• Most are transmembrane proteins
• Link between signals outside and inside a cell
• Extracellular and intracellular

Question 5

What is the function of the physiological receptors?

Answer 5

• They regulate cell function e.g ligand binds, receptor activated, response in cells
• They react with chemical messengers such as hormones, neurotransmitters or growth hormones

Question 6

What is an agonist?

Answer 6

An agonist is a drug which interacts with a receptor to produce a biological response
- is a drug or endogenous molecules which binds to a receptor and can produce a full biological response

Question 7

What is an antagonist?

Answer 7

Antagonists interact with a receptor but produce NO biological response - they block the biological activity
- is a drug or endogenous molecule which binds a receptor and blocks the receptor

Question 8

What are ligand-gated ion channels?

Answer 8

When a ligand binds they open and selectively allow ions to cross the membrane and into the cells = 5 protein subunits
Location: membrane
Effects: direct control of ion channel - control intracellular ion concentration
Response: milliseconds
Example: are involved in neurotransmission e.g nACh receptors

Question 9

What are voltage-gated ion channels?

Answer 9

Responds to and is sensitive to differences in charge across a membrane = 4 protein subunits
Location: membrane
Effects direct control of ion channel
Response; milliseconds
Example: Na+ voltage-gated ion channels