PHAR 300 final Flashcards
Pharmacology
The study of all compounds that interact with the body and includes knowledge of the interactions between these compounds and body constituents at any level of organization.
What is a drug?
Any chemical substance that affects a living system.
Risk-benefit evaluation
There is no such thing as a drug with no side effect, therefore if the benefit outweighs the risk, it can be used.
Pharmacogenomics
Understanding genetic differences among people and how these genetic differences influence one’s response to a drug.
→ an understanding of pharmacology + genetic differences in a population allows healthcare professionals to develop effective and safe drugs that can be tailored to one’s personal genetic makeup.
Proteomics
The study of proteomes
→ proteome: entire complement of proteins that is or can be expressed by a cell, tissue, or organism
Current sources of drugs
- Plants
- Synthetic production
- Biological methods
- Mono-clonal antibodies
Drug names
- Chemical name (N-(4-Hydroxyphenyl)acetamide)
- Generic name (Acetaminophen)
- Trade name (Tylenol)
Pharmacodynamics
What the DRUG does to the body
→ looking at drug receptors & immune system
→ looking at biological effects of the drug
Pharmacokinetics
What the BODY does to the drug
→ ADME
Therapeutics
Using drugs to prevent diseases
→ indications vs. contraindications
Methods of administration
- Oral (enteral)
- Injection (parenteral)
- Inhalation
- Topical (skin/mucosa)
- Sublingual
- Rectal
- Other
→ enclosed in liposome, implants, transdermal
Modified-release tablet
- For oral administration *
Used to adjust the time it takes to be absorbed for drugs that are quickly absorbed by the body and that have a shorter lifespan
First-pass effect
- AKA liver inactivation *
Phenomenon where the drug concentration is reduced before reaching the systemic circulation due to partial inactivation by the liver.
→ no first-pass effect with parenteral + sublingual methods
→ variable with rectal administration
Bioavailability
Amount of the drug available to get into the circulation after getting through the liver.
Different injection methods
- Subcutaneous
- Intravenous
→ fastest!! - Intramuscular
- Other (cerebrospinal fluid to bypass BBB, catheter…)
Administration routes & Peak drug concentrations in blood
- Intravenous → rapid rise + rapid decline as it reaches the target
- Oral → slower rise (takes time to be absorbed by GI tract) + lower peak concentration (first-pass effect)
- Rectal → slow absorption + lower peak level
- NTC L2 F3 *
Selectivity of drugs
- Selective effect → mostly targets one area
2. Generalized effect → acts on all systems (on the cell, in the cell, non-specific mechanisms)
Endogenous binding sites
- Antagonists BLOCK the the endogenous ligand from binding
2. Agonists MIMIC the natural ligand and bind the endogenous binding site
Allosteric binding sites
A different site from the endogenous binding site, which will alter the response at the endogenous binding site upon activation by the binding of a modulator
- Allosteric activators INCREASE response at a different site
- Allosteric inhibitors DECREASE response at a different site
Transmembrane signalling mechanisms
Involve the recognition and binding of an extracellular signal by an integral membrane receptor protein and the generation of intracellular signals by one or more effector proteins.
→ EX: receptor-activated enzyme, receptor-activated TK, receptor-activated ion channel, GPCR
Cellular receptors
- Ion channels
- GPCR
- RTK
- NPR
- Intracellular receptor
Ion channels
- found all over the body
- transmembrane-spanning proteins
- 3 conformations: open, closed, inactive
- types: voltage or ligand controlled
- drug affinity depends on:
- membrane potential
- channel cycling frequency
G-Protein Coupled Receptor (GPCR)
- receptor spanning the plasma membrane 7 times
- acts as an “on/off” switch for cell signalling
- general process:
- signal binds GPCR
- GPCR exchanges GTP for GDP
- Dissociation of alpha & beta-gamma subunits
- Activation of effector protein by detached alpha subunit
- production of secondary messenger
- downstream signalling
GPCR: Muscarinic receptors
- ACh binds GPCR
- GPCR activates K+ channel
- K+ exits the cell
- Hyperpolarization of cell
GPCR: Epinephrine receptor
- Epinephrine binds GPCR
- cAMP released as second messenger
- leads to release of glucose
Receptor turnover
Receptors are dynamic
- internalization & recycling
- changing number of receptors at the plasma membrane
- degradation through fusion with lysosome
Receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK)
- General process:
- ligand binds to receptor
- RTK dimerizes (activated)
- phosphorylation of Tyr residues
- activation of related protein
- downstream signalling
- typical agonists = insulin, GF
Natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR)
- peptide receptor
- activate cellular responses in kidney + heart
Intracellular receptors
- alter gene expression + protein synthesis
- receptor = ligand binding domain + DNA-binding domain
- response time may differ depending on receptor type
ion channel → GPCR → enzymes → DNA-linked
Dose-response curve
x axis: [drug] in log scale
y axis: response in % max
→ ED-50 (effective dose) = drug dose required to produce an effect on 50% of population
→ potency based on amount of drug needed to get ED-50 (the further to the left, the more potent the drug)
→ threshold = point where you start to see an effect of the drug (smallest dose to get a response)
→ ceiling dose = point at which the effects of the drug level off (plateau)
Receptor occupancy
- typically WAY LESS than 100% → no need to occupy all available receptors to get 100% response
- this is due to spare receptors used as a fail-safe mechanism
Drug affinity
- drugs differ in affinity for receptor binding site
- the lower a drug’s affinity, the more drug is required to get the same effect as a more potent drug
Efficacy
The proportion of receptors forced into their active conformation when occupied by a particular by a particular drug and give the DESIRED response.
Agonists
Lock & key model
- Full agonist
→ binds its receptor and leads to a large response
→ high efficacy - Partial agonist
→ binds its receptor but only leads to a small response in the cell
→ low efficacy
→ allows blockage of full agonists (not the same as giving antagonist)
→ commonly used for withdrawal
Antagonists
Drugs that simply block the receptor and get in the way of its endogenous agonist.
- Competitive antagonist
→ binds to same site as agonist
→ shift the DR curve to the RIGHT - Non-competitive antagonist
→ binds to a different site than the agonist (allosteric modulation)
→ its effect cannot be overcome with an increased dose of agonist
→ lowers DR curve peak - Irreversible antagonist
→ binds to receptor irreversibly (longer effect)
→ decreases number of available receptors
→ causes an increase in receptor turnover - Reversible antagonist
→ binds to the receptor reversibly
→ avoids toxicity
Potentiation
Potentiation is an interaction between two or more drugs resulting in a pharmacologic response greater than the sum of individual responses to each drug.
→ agonist + allosteric activator will cause peak to go DOWN and curve to shift to the LEFT
→ less natural ligand needed for a certain response
Quantification of side effects
- ED-50: dose of drug required to produce a therapeutic effect in 50% of population
- TD-50: dose of drug required to produce a toxic effect in 50% of population
- LD-50: dose of drug required to produce a lethal effect in 50% of population
(→ determined in animals only and usually only LD-10)
Therapeutic index (TI)
The ratio of toxic to therapeutic effect → LD50/ED50 or TD50/ED50
- the larger the TI, the safer the drug
(distance between the toxic/lethal dose and the therapeutic dose)
Therapeutic window
The dose range within which most people get therapeutic effects without getting side effects.
→ the larger the therapeutic window, the safer the drug
Safety factor
The ratio of the highest exposure that does not induce toxicity to the exposure that exerts efficacy → TD1/ED99
→ the larger the safety factor, the safer the drug
DR outliers
- Benefit outliers
2. Toxicity outliers
(L)ADME
- Liberation
- Absorption
→ enteral route: stomach, SI, liver, capillaries - Distribution
- Metabolism
- Excretion
Weak acids vs Weak bases
- weak acid
→ a weak acid in a more acidic environment is in its unionized form (lipid soluble)
→ some drug absorbed in stomach
→ regular antacid use may affect the rate of absorption of weak acid drugs - weak base
→ able to easily diffuse through membrane in SI where the environment is more basic
→
One compartment model
Drug is distributed evenly throughout the body
→ FALSE!
Two compartment model
A drug is more concentrated in organs with more blood flow and eventually gets distributed equally in all the body after a long time.
→ the rate of blood flow varies with respect to the different organs
→ highest blood flow to brain + heart + liver + kidney
Three compartment model
Drug goes to the brain first, then muscles, then adipose tissue, and is distributed unequally
→ FALSE!
Distribution to the brain → BBB
- Blood brain barrier (BBB) used for protection
- fat-soluble drugs cross the BBB readily
- tight-junctions present for protection
- active transport mainly needed to cross BBB
- drug is eliminated from the brain by CSF → not much metabolism in the brain
Defective BBB
- underdeveloped in newborns
- people with infections
- no barrier between the CSF and brain
Placenta
- NOT an effective barrier to drugs
- drugs can concentrate in the fetus
Volume of distribution
As drugs enter into the blood, it will over time go from the central volume of distribution to the peripheral volume of distribution to reach an equilibrium
Apparent volume of distribution
Amount of drug in body (mg) / [Drug] in plasma (mg/L)
→ low AVD: most of the drug is bound to plasma proteins
→ high AVD: most of the drug is distributed to tissues
→ knowing the AVD of a drug + [drug] in the plasma for a required effect, one can determine the LOADING dose
→ AVD variations due to:
- drug properties
- protein binding
- tissue binding