General Pharmacology Lecture Slides on introduction to Pharmacology by Sanjaya Mani Dixit Assistant Professor of Pharmacology at Kathmandu Medical College
3. What is pharmacology?
Greek words
pharmakon - drug or poison
Logos - study
The science that deals with
the fate of drugs in the body and
(pharmacokinetics)
their actions on the body
(pharmacodynamics)
6. Ostwald Schmiedeberg
German
Father of Modern Pharmacology
Introduced Urethane as hypnotic
Obtained his doctrate degree with a
thesis on measurement of Chloroform in
blood.
Nice to know
7. Drugs
Any substance used for the purpose
of diagnosis, prevention, relief or cure
of a disease.
WHO definition (1966):
“Drug is any substance or product that
is used or is intended to be used to
modify or explore physiological systems
or pathological states for benefit of the
recipient.”
8. Pharmacokinetics
Greek word: kinesis- movement
Pharmacokinetics is the quantitative
movement of drug in, through and out of the
body.
Pharmacokinetics comprises of
absorption,
distribution,
metabolism, and
excretion.
11. Pharmacodynamics
Greek word: dynamics- power
It refers to the action of the drug at
the cellular level.
It consists of the binding of a drug to
its receptor or site of binding,
relationship of dose and therapeutic
level to physiologic response, and
relationship of drug action and efficacy
to dosage interval.
12. Clinical pharmacology
It is scientific study of drugs in
humans.
Includes P.K and P.D investigation in
healthy volunteers and in patients,
evaluation of efficacy and safety of
drugs and comparative trails with other
forms of treatment, surveillance of
patterns of drugs use, adverse effects
etc.
13. Toxicology
The study of undesirable effects of
chemical agents (industrial pollutants,
natural organic and non-organic
chemicals) on living systems.
Adverse effects of therapeutic agent
given in large doses.
Measurement and detection of
poisons as well as treatment of
poisoning
14. Other Terms
Pharmacognosy: It is the science
that deals with natural drugs and their
constituents
Pharmacotherapeutics: The
application of pharmacological
information together with knowledge of
the disease for its prevention, mitigation
or cure.
15. Continued
Pharmacy: the science of identification,
selection, preservation, standardization,
compounding, proper utilization and
dispensing of medicinal substances
Chemotherapy: The effect of drugs on
parasites i.e. microorganisms, living &
multiplying in living organisms etc. it also
includes drug treatment of malignancy
20. Drug Nomenclature
Chemical name
Non-proprietary or Generic name
Approved name
Name not yet in
Pharmacopoeias
Official name
Drug name in
Pharmacopoeias
Aspirin (U.S.P.), Aspirin
(B.P.)
Common name
Usually the same as generic
name
Proprietary or Trade or Brand
name examples
Aciloc/ Pantop
21. Chemical name
Describes the drug chemically:
l Aspirin: Acetyl Salicylic Acid
Disadvantages: cumbersome and
not suitable for use in prescribing
22. Non-proprietary name
Accepted by USAN (United states
adopted name) council
Approved name (in pharmacopoeia) or
official name (post official publication)
Generic name (common), e.g. Penicillin,
heparin, nifedipine, etc.
Most preferable & important, uniform,
convenience and better comprehension
23. Propriety Name
The name of drugs are assigned by
the manufacture company & is his
property or trade mark.
Designed to be catchy, short, easy to
remember and often suggestive, e.g.
Niko, Fam-20,Amclox,Brufen etc.
Most clinicians prefer and prescribe by
branded names. (Common trend in
Nepal.)
24. Ciprofloxacin (Cipro-A 750)
Chemical name
1-cyclopropyl-6-fluoro-4-oxo-
7-piperazin-1-yl-quinoline-3-
carboxylic acid
Generic name
Ciprofloxacin
Trade name
Cipro- A 750
25. Classifications based on Use
Classify drugs according to the organ
system upon which they exert their most
prominent actions
Anesthetic drugs
Anti-convulsants
CNS stimulants
ANS drugs
Cardiovascular drugs
Anti-hypertensive agents
Diuretics
Muscle relaxants
Analgesics
Anti-inflammatory drugs
Antihistamine
26. History–Ebers Papyrus
The Ebers Papyrus, also known
as Papyrus Ebers, is an Egyptian
medical papyrus dating to 1550 BC.
Describes more than 700 drugs in
extensive use at that time.
Included agents are:
Turpentine, berries, poppy, Lead, salt,
etc. (Egyptian remedies)
Nice to know