Vocabulary

Question 1

Absorption

Answer 1

Process by which a drug enters the circulatory system.

Question 2

The Pharmacokinetic Processes

Answer 2

Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, and Elimination (ADME)

Question 3

Addiction

Answer 3

Dependence characterized by a received need to take a drug to attain the psychological and physical effects of mood altering substances.

Question 4

Affinity

Answer 4

Natural attraction; the strength by which a particular chemical messenger binds to its receptor site on a cell.

Question 5

Agonist

Answer 5

Drug that mimics the action of a neurotransmitter when it binds to a particular receptor site - i.e. & triggers the cell’s response in a manner similar to the action of the body’s own chemical messenger.

Question 6

Anaphylactic Reaction

Answer 6

Severe allergic response resulting in immediate life-threatening respiratory distress, usually followed by vascular collapse & shock accompanied w/ hives.

Question 7

Angiodema

Answer 7

Abnormal accumulation of fluid in tissue.

Question 8

Antagonist

Answer 8

Drug that neutralizes or counteracts the effects of a neurotransmitter or another drug when it binds to a particular receptor site.

Question 9

Antigen

Answer 9

Foreign substance that is recognized by the immune system & induces the immune system to produce antibodies to defend against the foreign substance.

Question 10

Bioavalibility

Answer 10

Degree to which a drug or other substance becomes available to the target tissue after administration.

Question 11

Blood-Brain Barrier

Answer 11

Fortified area that prevents many substances from entering the cerebro-spinal fluid from the blood. This area is formed by glial cells that envelope capillaries in the fcentral nervous system. This creates a shield that blocks many water-soluble compounds, but is permeable to lipid-soluble substances.

Question 12

Ceiling Effect

Answer 12

Point @ which no clinical response occurs w/ increased dosage of a drug.

Question 13

Clearance

Answer 13

Rate @ which a drug is eliminated from a specific volume of blood per unit of time.

Question 14

Contraindication

Answer 14

Any disease, condition, or symptom for which a drug will not be beneficial & may be harmful.

Question 15

Body Molecules drugs ca combine with:

Answer 15

Enzymes, Nucleic Acids, Receptors, Transport Proteins

Question 16

Duration of Action

Answer 16

Length of time a drug gives the desired response/remains at the therapeutic level.

Question 17

Elimination

Answer 17

Removal of a drug or the drugs metabolites from the body by excretion.

Question 18

First-Order

Answer 18

Drugs for which the rate of elimination is concentration dependent

Question 19

First Pass Effect

Answer 19

Extent to which a drug is metabolized by the liver before reaching full body circulation. This can substantially decrease bioavailability of certain drugs when administered orally, in which case administration by injection is required.

Question 20

Half-Life

Answer 20

Time necessary for the body to eliminate half of the drug in the body @ any 1 time (written as T 1/2).

Question 21

Induction

Answer 21

Process by which a drug increases the concentration of certain enzymes that affect the pharmacologic response to other drugs.

Question 22

Inhibition

Answer 22

Process by which a drug blocks enzyme activity & impairs the metabolism of another drug.

Question 23

Loading Dose

Answer 23

Amt of a drug that will bring the blood concentration rapidly to a therapeutic level.

Question 24

Maintinance Dose

Answer 24

Amt of a drug administered at regular intervals to keep the blood concentration @ a therapeutic level. An important factor in determining this, is a drug’s clearance rate.

Question 25

Peak

Answer 25

Top or upper limit of a drug’s concentration in the blood.

Question 26

Pharmacokinetic Modeling

Answer 26

Method of describing the process of absorption, distribution, metabolism, & elimination (ADME) of drug w/i the body mathematically.

Question 27

Prophylaxis

Answer 27

Effect of a drug in preventing infection or disease.

Question 28

Pruritis

Answer 28

Itching Sensation.

Question 29

Specicifity

Answer 29

Property of a cell receptor that enables it to bind only w/ a specific chemical messenger complementary to the structure of the receptor.

Question 30

Trough

Answer 30

Lowest level of a drug in the blood.

Question 31

Wheals

Answer 31

Slightly elevated, red areas on the surface of the body.

Question 32

Zero-Order

Answer 32

Drugs for which the rate of elimination is not concentration dependent

Question 33

Blinded Investigational Drug Study

Answer 33

A research design in which the subjects are purposely unaware of whether the substance they are administered is the drug under study or the placebo. This method serves to eliminate bias on the part of research subjects in reporting their body’s responses to investigational drugs.

Question 34

Double-blind Investigational Drug Study

Answer 34

A research design in which both of the investigator(s) and the subjects are purposely unaware of whether the substance administered to a given subject is the drug under study or the placebo. This method eliminates bias on the part of both investigator and the subject.

Question 35

Drug Polymorphism

Answer 35

Variation in response to a drug because of a patient’s age, gender, size, and/or body composition.

Question 36

Expeditated Drug Approval

Answer 36

Acceleration of the usual investigational new drug approval process by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and pharmaceutical companies, usually for drugs used to treat life-threatening diseases.

Question 37

Invesigational New Drug

Answer 37

A drug not approved for marketing by the FDA but available for use in experiments to determine its safety and efficacy

Question 38

Narcotic

Answer 38

Applied to drugs that produced insensibility or stupor, especially the opioids (e.g., morphine, heroin). The term is currently used in clinical settings to refer to and medically administered controlled substance and in legal settings to refer to any illicit or “street” drug.

Question 39

Orphan Drugs

Answer 39

Drugs for rare diseases