Ch 2 Abrams - Key Terms

Question 1

Absorption

Answer 1

process that occurs from the time a drug enters the body to the time it enters the bloodstream to be circulated

Question 2

agonist

Answer 2

drug that produces effects similar to those produced by naturally occurring hormones, neurotransmitters, and other substances

Question 3

antagonist

Answer 3

drug that inhibits cell function by occupying receptor sites

Question 4

antidote

Answer 4

substance that relieves prevents, or counteracts the effect of a poison

Question 5

bioavailability

Answer 5

portion of a drug dose that reaches the systemic circulation and is available to act on body cells

Question 6

biotransformation

Answer 6

when drugs are altered from their original form into a new form by the body; also referred to as metabolism

Question 7

distribution

Answer 7

transport of drug molecules within the body; after a drug is injected or absorbed into the bloodstream, it is carried by the blood and tissue fluids to its sites of action, metabolism, and excretion

Question 8

enterohepatic recirculation

Answer 8

drugs or metabolites that are excreted in bile, reabsorbed from the small intestine, returned to the liver, metabolized, and eventually excreted in urine

Question 9

enzyme induction

Answer 9

production of large amounts of drug-metabolizing enzymes by liver cells; process accelerates drug metabolism because larger amounts of the enzymes allow larger amounts of a drug to be metabolized during a given time

Question 10

enzyme inhibition

Answer 10

process in which a molecule binds to enzymes and inhibits their activity

Question 11

excretion

Answer 11

elimination of a drug from the body; effective excretion requires adequate functioning of the circulatory system and of the organs of excretion (kidneys, bowel, lungs, and skin)

Question 12

first-pass effect

Answer 12

initial metabolism of some oral drugs as they are carried from the intestine to the liver by the portal circulatory system prior to reaching the systemic circulation for distribution to site of action

Question 13

hypersensitivity

Answer 13

immune-mediated reaction to a drug

Question 14

loading dose

Answer 14

dose larger than the regular prescribed daily dosage of a medication; used to attain a therapeutic blood level

Question 15

maintenance dose

Answer 15

quantity of drug that is needed to keep blood levels and/or tissue levels at a steady state or constant levelz

Question 16

nephrotoxicity

Answer 16

toxic or damaging effect of a substance on the kidney; potentially serious because renal damage interferes with drug excretion, causing drug accumulation and increased adverse effects

Question 17

pharmacodynamics

Answer 17

reactions between living systems and drugs; drug actions on target cells and the resulting alterations in cellular biochemical reactions and functions

Question 18

pharmacogenomics

Answer 18

study of how a person’s genetic heritage leads to variable responses to drugs; more generally refers to genetic polymorphisms that occur in a patient population, such as an ethnic group, as opposed to an individual person

Question 19

pharmacokinetics

Answer 19

drug movement through the body to reach sites of action, metabolism, and excretion

Question 20

polymorphism

Answer 20

occurrence of two or more clearly different forms in a species important in drug therapy because it explains the functionally different response to drugs in a general patient population or a specific individual

Question 21

prodrugs

Answer 21

initially inactive drugs that exert no pharmacologic effects until they are metabolized

Question 22

serum drug level

Answer 22

lab measurement of the amount of a drug in the blood at a particular time

Question 23

serum half-life

Answer 23

time required for the serum concentration of a drug to decrease by 50%; also called elimination