534-201 Pharmacology

Special requirements: laboratory coat.

Experiments involving the use of animals are an essential part of this subject; exemption is not possible.

25 points of 100-level chemistry; biology 650-141 and 650-142 (prior to 2004: 600-141 and 600-142). Exemption may be considered in special cases.

The lecture course covers the basic principles of drug action and focuses on receptor sites that mediate drug action and the physiological and biochemical mechanisms associated with the response to a drug. The interaction of drugs with hormones and common therapeutic agents will be used to illustrate these principles. It investigates the ways in which drugs are handled by the body in terms of their absorption, distribution and metabolism. The course examines the development of new drugs from natural sources or new chemical syntheses and how these drugs are evaluated and regulated. Aspects of drugs of abuse and addiction and the potential strategies for dealing with this problem will be examined. The principles of selective toxicity and the toxicology of environmental contaminants will be introduced. Aspects of venoms and toxins will be examined. The practical course will reinforce the lecture material and illustrate the basic concepts of the pharmacological concentration response relationship, competitive antagonism and pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic modelling.

Students will gain skills in:

• critical thinking and problem solving;

• participating effectively in group work; and

• making use of information technology resources in data presentation.

Ongoing assessment of practical work during the semester (20%); a 40-minute written test held mid-semester (10%); a 2-hour written examination in the examination period (70%).