Lecture 29 - Intro to drugs

Question 1

What is the Rang definition of drug?

Answer 1

A chemical substance of KNOWN STRUCTURE, other than a nutrient or supplementary dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect.

Question 2

Drugs, according to Rang, do not include what?

Answer 2

‘Natural extracts’ or ‘herbal remedies’ that are of unknown structure.

Question 3

What is the affect of atenolol?

Answer 3

Anti-hypertensive drug that limits some of the cardio-respiratory reserve response to the demands of exercise.

Question 4

What is the structure of formivirsen? What is used to treat?

Answer 4

Antisence oligoucleotide complementary to the cytomegalovirus. Used to reduce CMV load in immmunocompromised patients

Question 5

How and why is formivirsen applied?

Answer 5

Applied topically to the eye because it is so large and charged that it is lipophylic and cannot be absorbed otherwise.

Question 6

What is Mipomersen used for?

Answer 6

Used to lower cholesterol

Question 7

What type of drug is Erythropoietin and what is it used for?

Answer 7

EPO is a recombinant protein used in patients in chemotherapy that have an impaired production of red blood cells.

Question 8

What is D-tubocurarine?

Answer 8

The active ingredient in the South American poison dart preparation ‘curare.’

Question 9

Are amino acids drugs? Why or why not?

Answer 9

No because they are supplementary dietary ingredients.

Question 10

What is AOD9604 and what is it used for?

Answer 10

The last 15 amino acids of HGH, thought to activate GH receptors and marketed as performance enhancing and anti-aging but not backed by evidence.

Question 11

Why is AOD9604 unlikely to be useful as a topical treatment?

Answer 11

It is probably highly lipophilic because of the charges of the amino acids so it won’t be absorbed and also it must cross the thick dermis.

Question 12

What four factors are important to consider when considering if a drug will work?

Answer 12

Absorption, distribution, site of action, and metabolism.

Question 13

What is very important (and may be assessed) when ‘getting the dose right’?

Answer 13

Factors that affect the height and position of the dose response curve (in vivo) or dose concentration curve (in vitro)

Question 14

Define ‘pharmacodynamics.’

Answer 14

Action of the drugs on the body

Question 15

Define ‘ pharmacoinetics.’

Answer 15

Action of the body on the drug.

Question 16

What are four broad targets of drugs?

Answer 16

Receptors, enzymes, transcription and translation, ion channels and transporters.

Question 17

What do almost all drugs need to do in order to exert an effect on the body?

Answer 17

Bind to a receptor!

Question 18

How can small doses of a drug have such large cellular or physiological affects?

Answer 18

A small amount of initial energy between drug and its receptor can be amplified into a large response by systems of signal transduction. IE, small conc can give big bang.

Question 19

What is one of the most important factors of receptor-cell interactions?

Answer 19

The speed of response.

Question 20

Why does cortisol’s effects take so long to become apparent (hours)?

Answer 20

There has to be a change in the levels of different proteins in order to effect a change in function

Question 21

How did the native South America survive eating a piece of meat that had d-tubocurarine in it?

Answer 21

D-tubocurarine has a positive charge on it (nitrogen) which stops it being absorbed unless via parenteral (subcutaneous or intramuscular) injection as opposed to enteral ingestion.