Difference between Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical
Pharmacy is an area in healthcare profession which ensures the safety, effectiveness, and the rational use of medicines. Education in pharmacy involves aspects like preparation, dispensing and effective utilization of the medicinal drugs.
Pharmacology is a division of pharmaceutical sciences which deals with the study of drug or medication action, where a drug can be defined as any human-made, natural, or endogenous (from within the body) molecule which exerts a biochemical or physiological effect on the cells, tissues, organs, or the organism.
More specifically, it is the study of the interactions occurring between a living organism and chemicals that affect normal or an abnormal biochemical functions. If the compounds have the desired medicinal properties, they are considered as pharmaceuticals.
Pharmacology, a biomedical science, deals with the research, discovery, and characterization of chemicals which show biological effects and the elucidation of cellular and organismal function concerning these chemicals. It is the study of drugs, their interaction with other molecules in the body, and their impact on the body.
The two main areas of pharmacology are:
- Pharmacodynamics studies the effects of a drug on biological systems. Pharmacodynamics discusses the chemicals with biological receptors. It is what a drug does in the body, and how the drug binds to receptors.
- Pharmacokinetics involves the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) of chemicals from the biological systems, and studies the effects of biological systems on a drug.
These two main areas of pharmacology mainly provide a comprehensive picture of the safety and actions of various medications. The discipline, also explains the molecular mechanisms by which drugs cause biological effects.
Pharmacology also involves molecular modelling of drugs, and the use of drugs as tools to dissect various aspects of cell function.
Pharmacology is crucial in:
- Discovery of new medications to help fight diseases prevalent such as cancer, heart disease and other infectious diseases.
- Improvement of the effectiveness of drugs, eliminating unwanted side effects of medicines, as different individuals respond in a different way to the medications.
Pharmacology also is the study of how chemical agents, both natural and synthetic, affect biological systems. This study also encompasses:
- Investigation of the derivation, chemical properties, physiological and behavioral effects.
- Mechanisms of action, biological transformations, and therapeutic and non-therapeutic uses of drugs.
- Effects of chemical compounds upon cellular, subcellular, systemic, physiological, or behavioral processes.
- Treatment and prevention of diseases, and potential hazards of pesticides and herbicides.
Pharmacology is the complete scientific study of how drugs (chemical compounds) can interact with a myriad of receptors located in various tissues of the body to produce effects that change a physiological outcome in the body. For example, how does a drug work to decrease arterial blood pressure?
Pharmacology also involves more efficient and effective ways of administering drugs through clinical research on large numbers of patients. Pharmaceutical science is the study of the physical and chemical properties of drugs, and their dosage forms. It includes theoretical/computational chemistry and molecular modeling, which enable computer-assisted drug modification, and design.
It even includes the other aspects of Drug Delivery, Pharmaceutical Processing and Material Science focusing on the novel applications of pharmaceutical excitements to target drugs to specific sites in the body; to check issues related to solubility, stability, dissolution rate and bio availability; and to utilize advanced processing technologies to design innovative drug delivery systems.
Pharmaceutical Sciences combines diversified fields like drug discovery and development, drug design, drug action, drug delivery, adverse drug events, and toxicological effects. Pharmaceutical science can be broadly categorized into several specialties like drug analysis and pharmaceutical quality, and pharmaceutical biotechnology. Others specialties include clinical pharmacology and translational research, formulation design, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, drug metabolism, physical pharmacy, biopharmaceutics, regulatory sciences, and medicinal chemistry.
If your looking for Pharmacy Course admission in Delhi NCR you can visit — Lloyd Institute of Management and Technology (Pharm.) and get all information related D. Pharm. , B. Pharm. and M. Pharm courses.
Author
Sarika Mahtta
(Associate professor)
Lloyd Institute of Management and Technology (Pharm.)
