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pharmacology lecture notes
University
King’s College London
Course
Fundamentals of Pharmacology (4BBY1040)
4BBY1040
Lecture 1 (What is pharmacology?)
Pharmacology science of drugs: design and synthesis
Therapeutics medicinal use of drugs
Pharmacy preparing, condensing, compounding and dispensing drugs
Conventional drugs have at least three names: proprietary, common,
chemical eg, dispirin, aspirin, acetylsalicylic acid
Grouped by therapeutic use: analgesic/ anti-platelet
OR sometimes by mechanism of action: mechanism: cyclooxygenase
inhibitor
Drugs are exogenous molecules that mimic or block the action of endogenous
molecules or systems.
TYPES OF PHARMACOLOGICAL RECEPTORS:
Physiological receptors: endogenous proteins that are the receptors for
endogenous chemical signalling compounds such as hormones or
neurotransmitters. Many drugs bind to such receptors.
Other proteins such as enzymes, ion channels: drugs may bind to specific sites
on proteins and prevent them from doing their job or, less commonly, they may
stimulate them e.g. an ion channel in a membrane may be ‘blocked’ or it may
be opened.
Nucleic acids: drugs may bind to regulatory sites on nucleic acids to influence
gene expression or protein synthesis.
AGONIST: stimulates a receptor to provoke a response
ANTAGONIST: prevents the receptor from being stimulated
Drug interactions can be reversible/irreversible depending on the binding site
and the drug and hydrophobic interactions, ionic attractions and covalent
bonding.
Pharmacodynamics what a drug does to an organisms
Pharmacokinetics what the organism does to the drug eg. Metabolism.
Determines how quickly a drug acts, whether it is local/systemic and for how
long the effects last.
PREVIEW
