The following are explanations of the words and concepts that may appear in the material:
Agonist: When a molecule binds to a receptor and activates the receptor, the molecule is called an agonist. A receptor is therefore agonistically affected by an agonist.
Analogue: In the pharmaceutical industry, an analogue is a new version of the drug being developed. If you change a single thing in your molecule, the new version will be an analogue to the version you started with.
Antagonist: When a molecule binds to a receptor and deactivates the receptor, the molecule is called an antagonist. A receptor is therefore antagonistically affected by an antagonist.
Active site: In an enzyme there is a small indentation in which the substrates bind and are subsequently converted into the product. This site is called the enzymes of the active site.
Binding site: In the receptor there is also a small depression in which the ligand binds and exerts its effect. This site is called the receptors for a binding site.
Bioavailability: An expression of how much of the dose given by a drug has been absorbed into the body and thereby entered the bloodstream. Therefore, bioavailability is measured by the level of the medicine in the blood.
Pharmacodynamics: Describes what a drug does to the body. That is, pharmacodynamics is how a drug binds to its target in the body.
Pharmacophore: In any drug, there are some functional groups that are necessary for the drug to have exactly the right effect. These functional groups together form what is called a pharmacophore.
Pharmacokinetics: Describes what the body does to a drug (as opposed to pharmacodynamics). This means that pharmacokinetics is how the drug is changed in the body, either into the active drug or into a substance that can be excreted from the body again.
Hydrophilic: That a chemical molecule is hydrophilic means that it is “water-loving”, i.e. the molecule is very easy to find in water and aqueous solutions. On the other hand, hydrophilic molecules are very reluctant to be in oil. In a mixture of oil and water, hydrophilic molecules will therefore lie in the water phase.
Hydrophobic: That a chemical molecule is hydrophobic means that it is “water-hating”, i.e. the molecule is very reluctant to be in water or aqueous solutions. On the other hand, hydrophobic molecules can very easily find themselves in oil. In a mixture of oil and water, hydrophilic molecules will therefore lie in the oil phase.
IC50: Inhibitory Concentration; Is the concentration of a drug needed to inhibit half of the target enzymes, receptors, ion channels, etc.
Intermolecular bonds: These bonds exist between two or more molecules.
Intramolecular bonds: These bonds exist between the atoms of the molecule.
In vitro: Experiments performed in vitro are experiments that are performed outside of a living organism. In vitro experiments are therefore experiments carried out in “petri dishes” or on cells.
In vivo: Experiments performed in vivo are experiments that are performed in a living organism. The experiments can be carried out in laboratory animals, such as mice and rats, but can also be carried out in humans later in the process.
Catalyst: A catalyst increases the reaction rate of a chemical reaction.
Clinical studies: Clinical studies are tests of one’s drug in humans. There are three different phases of clinical trials, where more and more people are included in the trials as the phases progress.
Ligand: A ligand is the molecule that binds to a receptor.
Metabolization: When a drug is absorbed into the body, it will eventually reach the liver. In the liver, the drug is converted into another molecule, it is broken down, and this is called metabolization.
Metabolite: When a drug has been changed to another molecule and thereby has been metabolized, the modified drug is called a metabolite.
Prodrug: Some drug gets absorbed into the body as an inactive form. The medicine is then converted, either in the blood or in the liver, so that the medicine is made active. Such a drug is called a prodrug.
Scaffold: A scaffold is the basic structure of a drug, without the drug’s functional groups. If a drug has a benzene ring, with different functional groups around the ring, then the benzene ring will be scaffolded.
Target: A target is the place in the body where a drug works. A target can be many different things, but is most often proteins such as enzymes, receptors or ion channels.
Toxic: When a drug is toxic, it is somehow toxic to the body.
