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In pharmacology, potency or biological potency [1] is a measure of a drug's biological activity expressed in terms of the dose required to produce a pharmacological effect of given intensity. [2]
A clinical chemistry analyzer; hand shows size. Clinical chemistry (also known as chemical pathology, clinical biochemistry or medical biochemistry) is a division in medical laboratory sciences focusing on qualitative tests of important compounds, referred to as analytes or markers, in bodily fluids and tissues using analytical techniques and specialized instruments. [1]
The phrase "drug design" is similar to ligand design (i.e., design of a molecule that will bind tightly to its target). [6] Although design techniques for prediction of binding affinity are reasonably successful, there are many other properties, such as bioavailability, metabolic half-life, and side effects, that first must be optimized before a ligand can become a safe and effictive drug.
The idea that the effect of a drug in the human body is mediated by specific interactions of the drug molecule with biological macromolecules, (proteins or nucleic acids in most cases) led scientists to the conclusion that individual chemicals are required for the biological activity of the drug.
Students of pharmacology must have a detailed working knowledge of aspects in physiology, pathology, and chemistry. They may also require knowledge of plants as sources of pharmacologically active compounds. [38] Modern pharmacology is interdisciplinary and involves biophysical and computational sciences, and analytical chemistry.
In contrast to the definition of ligand in metalorganic and inorganic chemistry, in biochemistry it is ambiguous whether the ligand generally binds at a metal site, as is the case in hemoglobin. In general, the interpretation of ligand is contextual with regards to what sort of binding has been observed.
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The fraction unbound can be altered by a number of variables, such as the concentration of drug in the body, the amount and quality of plasma protein, and other drugs that bind to plasma proteins. Higher drug concentrations would lead to a higher fraction unbound, because the plasma protein would be saturated with drug and any excess drug would ...