Pharmacodynamics (PD) is the study of the biochemical and physiologic effects of
drugs (especially pharmaceutical drugs). The effects can include those manifested within animals (including humans), microorganisms, or combinations of organisms (for example, infection).Pharmacodynamics and
pharmacokinetics are the main branches of pharmacology, being itself a topic of
biology interested in the study of the interactions between both endogenous and exogenous chemical substances with living organisms.In particular,
pharmacodynamics is the study of how a drug affects an organism, whereas
pharmacokinetics is the study of how the organism affects the drug. Both together influence dosing, benefit, and adverse effects.
Pharmacodynamics is sometimes abbreviated as PD and
pharmacokinetics as PK, especially in combined reference (for example, when speaking of PK/PD models). General anesthetics were once thought to work by disordering the neural membranes, thereby altering the Na+ influx. Antacids and chelating agents combine chemically in the body. Enzyme-substrate binding is a way to alter the production or metabolism of key endogenous chemicals, for example aspirin irreversibly inhibits the enzyme prostaglandin synthetase (cyclooxygenase) thereby preventing inflammatory response. Colchicine, a drug for gout, interferes with the function of the structural protein tubulin, while Digitalis, a drug still used in heart failure, inhibits the activity of the carrier molecule, Na-K-ATPase pump. The widest class of
drugs act as ligands that bind to receptors that determine cellular effects. Upon drug binding, receptors can elicit their normal action (agonist), blocked action (antagonist), or even action opposite to normal (inverse agonist)
Relevant Topics in Neuroscience & Psychology
