Basic terminology in pharmacology.

1. Prepared by
Ms. Nisha S. Mhaske
M.Pharm (Q.A.T)
Lecturer, PRES’s COPD, Chincholi.
Email : nisha.mhaske@pravara.in

2. Pharmacy
 It is the branch that deals
with preparation of drugs &
drug combinations in a
suitable dosage form,
suitable and convenient for
administration.
 A disease is a particular
abnormal condition that
negatively affects the
structure or function of part
or all of an organism, and
that is not due to any
external injury.

3.  Pharmacology
 The word pharmacology is derived from two Greek words,
 ‘Pharmacon’- a Drug, &
 ‘Logus’- to treat or science.
 Definition- “Pharmacology deals with study of sources of
drugs, mechanism of action, toxicity, absorption,
distribution and metabolism of drugs.”
 Drug is derived from French word ‘Drogue’ meaning Dry
Herb.
 Drug is defined as any substance used for diagnosis,
prevention & treatment of disease.
 Toxicology- “it is the science which deals with the adverse
effects of the drugs and study of poisons.”

4.  Pharmacokinetics - it is the study of absorption,
distribution, metabolism & excretion of drugs and their
relationship to pharmacological response.
 i.e. What the body does to the drug.

5.  Pharmacodynamics- the quantitative study of the
biological & therapeutic effects of drugs & their
mechanism of action is called pharmacodynamics.
 i.e. What the drug does to the body.

7. o Pharmacotherapeutics- it deals with the application of
drugs in the prevention and treatment of diseases.
o It means various methods and systems that are used in
prevention and treatment of diseases.
o Clinical pharmacology
 It is the scientific study of drugs in man.
 It includes pharmacodynamic & pharmacokinetic
investigations in healthy volunteers & in patients.
 Analysis of cost-benefit & risk-benefit ratio, determination
of ideal doses & drug utilization patterns are also the
part of clinical pharmacology.
Or

8.  Pharmacogenetic /
Idiosyncrasy
 It deals with the variation
of drug response due to
genetic factors.
 Variation in drug response
may be affected by genetic
variation.
 It is called idiosyncratic
reaction to drugs or inborn
error of drug metabolism.
 The genetic make up of an
individual is responsible
for the variation in the
drugs effect as well as
toxicity of drugs.

9.  Bioavailability- the fraction / amount of drug that
reaches the systemic circulation in an unchanged form
& is available at the site of drug action is called as
bioavailability.

10.  Prototype drugs
 All the drugs used in medicine can be arranged in
about 70 major groups & each group contains several
drugs.
 In each group of drugs, one member which exhibits
the major actions of all the drugs of a group is called
the prototype drug of the group.
o Gene therapy- this refers to modifying, correcting or
replacing an inherited or acquired deficient gene that
is responsible for the diseases.
 Xenobiotics- chemicals foreign to the body, which can
produce physiological or pharmacological effects, are
called xenobiotics.
 These may be components of food, drugs, poisons &
additives.

11. o Orphan drugs
 These are the drugs for rare
diseases that affect only a small
number of people.
 These drugs are not easily
available commercially as due to
their limited sales, their cost of
development and manufacturing is
not profitable.
 The government usually provides
some help in the development of
such drugs.
 Eg. Acetyl-1-cysteine used for
paracetamol poisoning.
 4-methyl-pyrazole used for
methanol poisoning.

12. BRANDED VS GENERIC DRUG

16. PATENT
 The term patent
usually refers to a
right granted to the
inventor for a
limited term over a
new & useful
inventions.
 Invention may
either for a
Product&
Process.

17. HALF LIFE- TIME AT WHICH DRUG HAS LOST
HALF ITS MAXIMUM CONCENTRATION.