This is a comprehensive glossary of terminology related to veterinary pharmacology, organized alphabetically from A to Z. Veterinary pharmacology is the study of drugs and their effects on animals, including their mechanisms of action, therapeutic uses, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and potential adverse effects. Veterinary Pharmacology glossary includes (A to Z) key terms relevant to the field, ensuring a broad coverage of concepts used in veterinary medicine.
A
- Absorption: The process by which a drug enters the bloodstream or systemic circulation from its site of administration.
- Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR): An unintended, harmful effect caused by a drug at normal doses.
- Agonist: A drug that binds to a receptor and activates it, producing a biological response.
- Analgesic: A drug used to relieve pain without causing loss of consciousness (e.g., opioids, NSAIDs).
- Anesthetic: A drug that induces loss of sensation or consciousness, used during surgical procedures.
- Antagonist: A drug that binds to a receptor but does not activate it, blocking the action of agonists.
- Anthelmintic: A drug used to treat parasitic worm infections (e.g., roundworms, tapeworms).
- Antibiotic: A drug used to treat bacterial infections by inhibiting or killing bacteria.
- Anticonvulsant: A drug used to prevent or control seizures (e.g., phenobarbital).
- Antifungal: A drug used to treat fungal infections (e.g., ketoconazole).
- Anti-inflammatory: A drug that reduces inflammation (e.g., corticosteroids, NSAIDs).
- Antiparasitic: A drug used to treat infections caused by parasites (e.g., fleas, ticks, mites).
- Antiprotozoal: A drug used to treat protozoal infections (e.g., metronidazole for Giardia).
- Antiseptic: A substance applied to living tissue to reduce the risk of infection by killing or inhibiting microorganisms.
- Antiviral: A drug used to treat viral infections by inhibiting viral replication.
- Area Under the Curve (AUC): A pharmacokinetic parameter representing the total drug exposure over time.
- Autacoid: A locally acting hormone-like substance (e.g., histamine, prostaglandins) that influences drug responses.
B
- Bioavailability: The proportion of a drug that reaches systemic circulation in an active form after administration.
- Biotransformation: The metabolic process by which the body chemically alters a drug, usually in the liver.
- Bolus: A single, large dose of a drug administered rapidly, often intravenously.
- Broad-spectrum antibiotic: An antibiotic effective against a wide range of bacteria (e.g., tetracyclines).
C
- Chemotherapeutic agent: A drug used to treat infections or cancer by targeting specific pathogens or cells.
- Clearance (CL): The rate at which a drug is removed from the body, typically via the kidneys or liver.
- Controlled substance: A drug regulated due to its potential for abuse or dependence (e.g., opioids).
- Corticosteroid: A drug mimicking cortisol, used for anti-inflammatory or immunosuppressive effects.
- Cytochrome P450 (CYP): A family of liver enzymes involved in drug metabolism.
D
- Depot injection: A drug formulation designed for slow release over an extended period.
- Distribution: The process by which a drug is dispersed throughout the body’s tissues and fluids.
- Dosage regimen: The schedule and amount of drug administration (e.g., dose, frequency, route).
- Dose: The specific amount of a drug administered at one time.
- Drug interaction: A change in a drug’s effect caused by another drug, food, or substance.
- Drug residue: Traces of a drug remaining in animal tissues or products (e.g., milk, meat) after administration.
- Duration of action: The length of time a drug produces its therapeutic effect.
E
- Efficacy: The maximum therapeutic effect a drug can produce.
- Elimination: The removal of a drug from the body via excretion or metabolism.
- Enterohepatic circulation: The recycling of a drug between the liver and intestines, prolonging its action.
- Excretion: The process by which a drug or its metabolites are eliminated from the body (e.g., via urine, feces).
- Extralabel drug use (ELDU): The use of a drug in a manner not specified on its approved label, permitted under veterinary supervision.
F
- First-pass metabolism: The metabolism of a drug in the liver or gut before it reaches systemic circulation.
- Formulation: The physical form of a drug (e.g., tablet, injection, topical) affecting its delivery and absorption.
- Frontline therapy: The primary or initial drug treatment for a condition.
G
- Generic drug: A drug equivalent to a brand-name drug in active ingredient, dosage, and efficacy but typically less expensive.
- Glucuronidation: A metabolic process where drugs are conjugated with glucuronic acid to enhance excretion.
H
- Half-life (t½): The time required for the concentration of a drug in the body to decrease by half.
- Hormone therapy: The use of hormones or hormone analogs to treat conditions (e.g., insulin for diabetes).
- Hydrophilic: A drug property indicating water solubility, affecting its absorption and distribution.
- Hydrophobic: A drug property indicating lipid solubility, influencing its ability to cross cell membranes.
I
- Idiosyncratic reaction: An unpredictable, abnormal response to a drug specific to an individual animal.
- Immunomodulator: A drug that modifies the immune system’s activity (e.g., cyclosporine).
- Induction: The process of increasing enzyme activity, often affecting drug metabolism.
- Inhibitor: A substance that reduces the activity of enzymes or receptors, altering drug effects.
- Intramuscular (IM): A route of drug administration into muscle tissue.
- Intravenous (IV): A route of drug administration directly into a vein.
- Ionization: The process by which a drug gains or loses a charge, affecting its solubility and absorption.
J
- Juxtacrine signaling: A type of cell signaling relevant to some autacoid-like drugs, where cells communicate via direct contact.
K
- Kinetics: The study of a drug’s movement through the body (see pharmacokinetics).
- Km (Michaelis constant): A measure of a drug’s affinity for an enzyme or receptor in pharmacodynamics.
L
- Lipophilicity: A drug’s ability to dissolve in fats, influencing its distribution and membrane penetration.
- Loading dose: An initial higher dose given to achieve therapeutic drug levels quickly.
- Local effect: A drug’s action confined to the site of administration (e.g., topical creams).
M
- Maintenance dose: The dose given regularly to maintain therapeutic drug levels.
- Metabolism: The chemical alteration of a drug in the body, often in the liver.
- Metabolite: A product formed from the metabolism of a drug, which may be active or inactive.
- Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC): The lowest concentration of an antibiotic that inhibits bacterial growth.
- Mydriatic: A drug that causes pupil dilation, used in ophthalmic exams.
N
- Narrow-spectrum antibiotic: An antibiotic effective against a limited range of bacteria.
- Neuroleptic: A drug used to manage psychosis or severe behavioral disorders in animals.
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID): A drug that reduces inflammation and pain without steroid use (e.g., carprofen).
O
- Off-label use: The use of a drug for an unapproved indication, species, or route, similar to ELDU.
- Opiate: A drug derived from opium, used for pain relief (e.g., morphine).
- Opioid: A synthetic or natural drug that acts on opioid receptors for analgesia.
- Oral administration: A route of drug delivery through the mouth, absorbed via the gastrointestinal tract.
- Over-the-counter (OTC) drug: A drug available without a prescription.
P
- Parasympathomimetic: A drug that mimics the action of the parasympathetic nervous system (e.g., bethanechol).
- Parenteral: Drug administration bypassing the gastrointestinal tract (e.g., IV, IM, subcutaneous).
- Pharmacodynamics: The study of a drug’s effects on the body, including mechanism of action and dose-response relationships.
- Pharmacokinetics: The study of a drug’s absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME).
- Pharmacotherapeutics: The application of drugs to treat diseases in animals.
- Placebo: An inactive substance used as a control in clinical trials.
- Plasma protein binding: The extent to which a drug binds to proteins in the blood, affecting its distribution.
- Potency: The amount of drug required to produce a specific effect, often compared to other drugs.
- Prescription drug: A drug requiring a veterinarian’s authorization for use.
- Prodrug: An inactive drug that is metabolized into an active form in the body.
- Prostaglandin: A lipid compound with hormone-like effects, often targeted by anti-inflammatory drugs.
Q
- Quaternary ammonium compound: A type of antiseptic or disinfectant used in veterinary settings.
R
- Receptor: A molecule on or in a cell that binds a drug, initiating a biological response.
- Resistance: The ability of a pathogen to withstand the effects of a drug, reducing its efficacy.
- Route of administration: The path by which a drug is given (e.g., oral, IV, topical).
S
- Sedative: A drug that calms or reduces excitement, often used before anesthesia.
- Selective toxicity: A drug’s ability to target pathogens or diseased cells without harming the host.
- Side effect: An unintended effect of a drug, often mild but undesirable.
- Subcutaneous (SC): A route of drug administration under the skin.
- Synergism: The enhanced effect when two drugs are used together, greater than the sum of their individual effects.
- Systemic effect: A drug’s action throughout the body after absorption into the bloodstream.
T
- Teratogen: A drug that can cause birth defects if administered during pregnancy.
- Therapeutic index (TI): The ratio of a drug’s toxic dose to its effective dose, indicating safety.
- Tmax: The time to reach the maximum concentration of a drug in the bloodstream.
- Tolerance: A reduced response to a drug after repeated use, requiring higher doses.
- Topical: A route of drug administration applied to the skin or mucous membranes.
- Toxicology: The study of harmful effects of drugs or chemicals on animals.
- Tranquilizer: A drug that reduces anxiety or agitation without significant sedation.
U
- Uptake: The movement of a drug into cells or tissues, often influencing its distribution.
V
- Vaccine: A biological preparation that stimulates immunity, sometimes considered alongside pharmacology for preventive therapy.
- Vasodilator: A drug that widens blood vessels, used to manage hypertension or heart conditions.
- Veterinary drug: A drug specifically approved or used for animals under veterinary supervision.
- Volume of distribution (Vd): A pharmacokinetic parameter indicating the extent to which a drug disperses into body tissues.
W
- Withdrawal time: The period after drug administration during which an animal’s products (e.g., milk, meat) must not be used for human consumption to ensure drug residues are below safe limits.
X
- Xenobiotic: A foreign chemical substance, including drugs, metabolized by the body.
Y
- Yield (therapeutic): The effectiveness of a drug in achieving the desired clinical outcome.
Z
- Zoonotic: A term describing diseases transmissible from animals to humans, relevant when considering drug treatments for such conditions.
