Module 1 - Introductory Pharmacology

Question 1

Drugs

Answer 1

Any substance that causes a change in an organism’s physiology or psychology when consumed.

Question 2

Receptor

Answer 2

A region of tissue, or a molecule in a cell membrane, which responds specifically to a neurotransmitter, hormone, antigen, or other substance.

Question 3

Enzyme

Answer 3

Proteins that are targets of many therapeutically useful drugs. Enzymes in the body accelerate important chemical reactions.

Question 4

Pharmacology

Answer 4

The science dealing with actions of drugs on the body (pharmacodynamics) and the fate of drugs in the body (pharmacokinetics).

Question 5

Pharmacodynamics

Answer 5

Branch of pharmacology that studies the effects of drugs and the mechanism of action (aka what do drugs actually do and how do they do it)

Question 6

Pharmacokinetics

Answer 6

Branch of pharmacology that studies the movement of drugs within the body

Question 7

Genes

Answer 7

A unit of heredity which is transferred from a parent to offspring and is held to determine some characteristic of the offspring

Question 8

Pathogens

Answer 8

A specific causative agent (such as a bacterium or virus) of disease. In traditional biology a pathogen is anything that can produce disease.

Question 9

Poison

Answer 9

Any substance that can cause illness or death when ingested in small quantities.

Question 10

Antigen

Answer 10

A toxin or other foreign substance which induces an immune response in the body, especially the production of antibodies.

Question 11

Agonist

Answer 11

A drug which binds to its “receptor” and produces its characteristic effect.

Question 12

Antagonist

Answer 12

A molecule binds to the receptor without causing an effect, thereby preventing an active substance from gaining access.

Question 13

Efficacy (or Intrinsic Activity)

Answer 13

The maximum effect of which the drug is capable of.

Question 14

Affinity

Answer 14

The strength of binding between drug and receptor.

Question 15

Selectivity

Answer 15

The separation between desired and undesired effects of a drug.

In the ideal case, a drug is completely specific, and an effective dose does not elicit any undesired effect

Question 16

Genetic Diseases

Answer 16

Result from mutations in the genetic complement (genome) contained in the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) of chromosomes. It can be a hereditary mutation (e.g. Huntington’s) or a mutation caused by the environment (UV Ray exposure can lead to skin cancer)

Question 17

Physiological Diseases

Answer 17

Abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not due to any immediate external injury. (Think poison)

Question 18

Autoimmune Disease

Answer 18

Disease involving the immune system. These fall into two broad categories: (1) those that arise when some aspect of the host’s immune mechanism fails to prevent infection (immune deficiencies) and (2) those that occur when the immune response is directed at an inappropriate antigen*.

Question 19

Infectious Disease

Answer 19

Disease that involves the is the invasion of an organism’s body tissues by disease-causing agents (virus, bacteria, fungi), their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agents and the toxins they produce.

Question 20

Small Molecule Drugs:

Answer 20

• Synthesized in a lab (or extracted from plants or fungi)
• Often straightforward to produce
• Stable at room temperature
• Simple structure
• Exact chemical structure determined

Question 21

Biologic Drugs:

Answer 21

• Produced by a living cell or animal
• Challenging to produce
• Usually needs refrigeration
• Complex structure, hard to determine exactly

Question 22

Branches of Pharmacology:

Answer 22

• Pharmacodynamics
• Pharmacokinetics
• Therapeutics
• Pharmacy
• Toxicology

Question 23

Causes of Diseases:

Answer 23

• Genetic Diseases
• Physiological Diseases
• Autoimmune Diseases
• Infectious Diseases

Question 24

Cell Membrane

Answer 24

The “barrier” of the cell, almost like an animal’s cell wall! Made up of lipids, and drugs which enter it must be able to dissolve in oils.

*Composed of Phospholipids