Basic Concepts and Processes - Chapter 2

Absorption
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Terms in this set (21)
Absorption
Process that occurs from the time a drug enters the body to the time it enters the blood stream to be circulated
Agonist
Drug the produces effects similar to those produced by naturally occurring hormones, neurotransmitters, and other substances
Antagonist
Drug that inhibits cell function by occupying receptor sits
Antidote
Substance that relieves, prevents, or counteracts the effects of a poison
Bioavailability
Portion of a drug dose that reaches the systemic circulation and is available to act on body cells
Biotransformation
When drugs are altered from their original form into a new form by the body; also referred to as metabolism
Distribution
Transport of drug molecules within the body; after a drug in injected or absorbed into the blood stream, it is carried by the blood and tissue fluids to its sites of action, metabolism, and excretion
Enterohepatic recirculation
Drugs or metabolites that are excrted in bile, reabsorbed from the small intestine, returned to the liver, metabolized, and eventually excreted in urine
Enzyme induction
Production of larger amounts of drug-metabolizing enzymes by liver cells; process accelerates drug metabolism because larger amounts of the enzymes (and more binding sites) allow larger amounts of a drug to be metabolized during a given time
Enzyme inhibition
Process in which a molecule binds to enzymes and inhibits their activity
ExcretionElimination 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)First-pass effectInitial 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 from distribution to site of actionHypersensitivityImmune-mediated reaction to a drugLoading doseDose larger than the regular prescribed daily dosage of a medication; used to attain therapeutic blood levelMaintenance doseQuantity of drug that is needed to keep blood levels and/or tissue levels at a steady state or constant levelNephrotoxicityToxic or damaging effect of a substance on the kidney; potentially serious because renal damage interferes with drug excretion, causing drug accumulation and increased adverse effectsPharmacodynamicsReactions between living systems and drugs; drug actions on target cells and the resulting alterations in cellular biochemical reactions and functionPharmacokineticsDrug movement through the body to reach sites of action, metabolism, and excretionProdrugsInitially inactive drugs that exert no pharmacological effect until they are metabolizedSerum drug levelLaboratory measurement of the amount of a drug in the blood at a particular timeSerum half-lifeTime required fro the serum concentration of a drug to decrease by 50%; also called elimination half-life