Pharmacology

Question 1

What is pharmacology?

Answer 1

The study of the action of drugs on the function of living systems

Question 2

What is pharmacodynamics?

Answer 2

What the drug does to the body

Question 3

What is pharmakinetics?

Answer 3

What the body does to the drug

Question 4

What are protein targets for drug binding?

Answer 4

Receptors
Ion channels
Enzymes
Transporters

Question 5

Why do we have receptors?

Answer 5

Primarily for the purpose of cell to cell communication

Question 6

What is a receptor?

Answer 6

A recognition molecule for a chemical mediator through which a response is transduced

Question 7

What is the three parts of the receptor structure?

Answer 7

Extracellular domain- ligand binding sites
Transmembrane Domain- Anchors protein in membrane
Intracellular Domain-Interacts with effector mechanisms

Question 8

What are the steps of signal transduction?

Answer 8

Signal
Reception
Transduction
Response

Question 9

What is an example of a very slow signal receptor?

Answer 9

Nuclear receptors

Question 10

What is a ligand?

Answer 10

Any chemical that binds to a receptor

Question 11

What is an agonist?

Answer 11

A drug that binds to a specific site on a receptor, mimics the effect of the endogenous ligand for that site

Question 12

What is an antagonist?

Answer 12

A drug that binds to a specific site on a receptor, blocks the effect of the endogenous ligand on the same or different site as ligand

Question 13

Do agonists have affinity and efficacy?

Answer 13

Yes both

Question 14

Do antagonists have affinity and efficacy?

Answer 14

They have affinity but they lack efficacy

Question 15

What is affinity?

Answer 15

Affinity is a measure of the strength of association between ligand and receptor

Question 16

What is efficacy?

Answer 16

Efficacy is a measure of the ability of an agonist to evoke a cellular response

Question 17

What is an example of a slow signal receptor?

Answer 17

Cytokine Receptors

Question 18

What may cause drug variability?

Answer 18

Sex
Age
Ethnicity
Liver Function
Pregnancy

Question 19

What is the difference between local and general anaesthetic?

Answer 19

General- Loose consciousness and sedates whole body
Local- Sedates a local area and remain consciousness

Question 20

Compare the half life of esters and amides?

Answer 20

Esther’s are metabolised quickly which causes a shorter effect (half life)
Amide metabolise slower and have a longer half life

Question 21

What 3 states do Na+ channels exist in?

Answer 21

Resting, open and inactivated

Question 22

How does the conduction of a nerve AP come about?

Answer 22

Opening of voltage gated Na+ channels, rapid influx of Na+ to depolarise the cell

Question 23

Where do local anaesthetics bind to in the cell?

Answer 23

Intracellular side of the Na+ channel

Question 24

How does local anaesthetics prevent Na+ influxes?

Answer 24

Blocks channel and stabilises it in inactivated confirmation

Question 25

What does the aromatic group of a local anaesthetic influence?

Answer 25

Hydrophobicity of drug

Question 26

What does the amide group of a local anaesthetic influence?

Answer 26

The charge on the drug

Question 27

What pKa values do local anaesthetics range from?

Answer 27

7.6-9

Question 28

Why are local anaesthetics often given with vasoconstrictors?

Answer 28

Less blood loss
Stop going into systematic circulation

Question 29

What are the main things we want to know about the drug?

Answer 29

What it does?
Potency
Selectivity

Question 30

What is potency?

Answer 30

A measure of the dose of a drug at which it is effective