This highly illustrated volume will describe, through clear diagrams and concise text, how the most prescribed, as well as new medicines, work in the body for a broad range of diseases. By bringing this knowledge together in one place, we will seek to answer the question, "What is the impact of the accelerating knowledge in biology, drug research and medical sciences on the development and approval of medicines for the treatment of a wide range of diseases". Furthermore, information on how a successful drug works can make the case for a particular therapy and provide an informed dialog between a patient and physician, or a professor and a student, or a regulator and pharmaceutical scientist. With the continuing explosion of medical information, the book addresses the following themes:
What topics should the medical schools teach the next generation of students? How to serve a medical practitioner who wishes to be better informed about the latest medicines? What about the regulatory agencies where the safety and effectiveness of a new drug can be better evaluated in the context of the biology of a particular disease. The advent of personalized medicine teaches that each patient is unique, which requires an understanding of the confluence of genetics, physiology, biochemistry and pharmacology for a specific drug.
This book breaks important new ground by focusing on the cellular biochemistry of selected diseases and how the respective drug works, using a concise, focused and non-technical graphic review.
Author(s): William S. Hancock
Publisher: World Scientific
Year: 2022
Language: English
Pages: 316
City: Singapore
Cover
Half Title Page
Title Page
Copyright Page
Contents Page
Foreword
Preface
Biographical Information
History
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1: The chemistry of life
Introduction
The biochemistry of enzymes and related diseases
Receptors and actions of medicines
Detoxification pathways
Chapter 2: The organs and molecules of life
How the body digests food and provides the building blocks for life.
The gastrointestinal tract.
The pancreas gland with secretions of enzymes and hormones.
The role of the liver in protein, nucleic acid, polysaccharide and lipid metabolism.
Chapter 3: The body’s protective systems and related diseases
The parts of the body’s protective systems
The innate and adaptive immune system
Diseases of the eye and medicines
A medicine for lung cancer
Skin diseases and medicines
Blood cell disorders and medicines
Chapter 4: Homeostasis of the body’s physiology
Body temperature regulation
Oxygen levels in blood
Blood pressure regulation
Regulation of blood glucose levels
Inflammation, aging and cancer
Chapter 5: Brain disorders and selected medicines
Diseases/disorders of the brain
Blood brain barrier and infectious diseases
Neurotransmitter functions
Amine neurotransmitters
Amino acid neurotransmitters
Peptide and other neurotransmitters
Chapter 6: Innovative medicines
Rare diseases
Small-molecule drugs
Antibody drugs
Peptide drugs
RNA drugs
Cell and gene therapy
Chapter 7: Viruses, diseases, drugs and vaccines
The Diversity of Viruses
RNA Viruses
The Influenza (flu) virus
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
Ebola virus
SARS-CoV-2
DNA Viruses
Smallpox (variola) virus
Hepatitis B
Human papillomavirus (HPV) virus
Additional Reading
Appendix I
Appendix II
Target biochemistry for action of medicines
