Pharmacology
Pharmacology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of drug action, where a drug can be broadly defined as any man-made, natural, or endogenous (from within the body) molecule which exerts a biochemical or physiological effect on the cell, tissue, organ, or organism (sometimes the word pharmacon is used as a term to encompass these endogenous and exogenous bioactive species). More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between a living organism and chemicals that affect normal or abnormal biochemical function. If substances have medicinal properties, they are considered pharmaceuticals.
The field encompasses drug composition and properties, synthesis and drug design, molecular and cellular mechanisms, organ/systems mechanisms, signal transduction/cellular communication, molecular diagnostics, interactions, toxicology, chemical biology, therapy, and medical applications and antipathogenic capabilities. The two main areas of pharmacology are pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics. Pharmacodynamics studies the effects of a drug on biological systems, and Pharmacokinetics studies the effects of biological systems on a drug. In broad terms, pharmacodynamics discusses the chemicals with biological receptors, and pharmacokinetics discusses the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) of chemicals from the biological systems. Pharmacology is not synonymous with pharmacy and the two terms are frequently confused. 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 in relation to these chemicals. In contrast, pharmacy, a health services profession, is concerned with application of the principles learned from pharmacology in its clinical settings; whether it be in a dispensing or clinical care role. In either field, the primary contrast between the two are their distinctions between direct-patient care, for pharmacy practice, and the science-oriented research field, driven by pharmacology.
The origins of clinical pharmacology date back to the Middle Ages in Avicenna's The Canon of Medicine, Peter of Spain's Commentary on Isaac, and John of St Amand's Commentary on the Antedotary of Nicholas. Clinical pharmacology owes much of its foundation to the work of William Withering. Pharmacology as a scientific discipline did not further advance until the mid-19th century amid the great biomedical resurgence of that period. Before the second half of the nineteenth century, the remarkable potency and specificity of the actions of drugs such as morphine, quinine and digitalis were explained vaguely and with reference to extraordinary chemical powers and affinities to certain organs or tissues. The first pharmacology department was set up by Rudolf Buchheim in 1847, in recognition of the need to understand how therapeutic drugs and poisons produced their effects.
Early pharmacologists focused on natural substances, mainly plant extracts. Pharmacology developed in the 19th century as a biomedical science that applied the principles of scientific experimentation to therapeutic contexts. Today pharmacologists use genetics, molecular biology, biochemistry, and other advanced tools to transform information about molecular mechanisms and targets into therapies directed against disease, defects or pathogens, and create methods for preventative care, diagnostics, and ultimately personalized medicine.
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Matching Pharmacology Colleges
University of California-Santa Barbara
Four or more years; Public; $39,516 average out-state tuition; $11,502 average in-state tuition |
Tulane University of Louisiana
Four or more years; Private not for profit; $48,920 average out-state tuition; $48,920 average in-state tuition |
Northeastern University
Four or more years; Private not for profit; $48,560 average out-state tuition; $48,560 average in-state tuition |
Stony Brook University
Four or more years; Public; $24,180 average out-state tuition; $6,670 average in-state tuition |
Georgetown University
Four or more years; Private not for profit; $51,720 average out-state tuition; $51,720 average in-state tuition |
The University of Tennessee-Health Science Center
Four or more years; Public; $27,989 average out-state tuition; $8,961 average in-state tuition |
CUNY York College
Four or more years; Public; $13,920 average out-state tuition; $6,530 average in-state tuition |
Scholarships for Pharmacology Majors
Edith Nourse Rogers STEM ScholarshipU.S. Department of Veterans Affairs |
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award Up to $30,000 |
deadline Varies |
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Jewel Scholars Program - Mount Mary CollegeMount Mary College |
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award $26,000 |
deadline Varies |
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Science Post Graduate Scholarship FundNative Forward Scholars Fund |
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award Up to $30,000 |
deadline June 01, 2023 |
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Bess Heflin FellowshipUniversity of Texas at Austin, Office of Graduate Studies |
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award $19,000 |
deadline Varies |
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Alice P. Gast STEM ScholarshipLehigh University |
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award $12,500 |
deadline Varies |
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SOLV Energy Women in Solar ScholarshipSolar Energy International (SEI) |
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award $10,000 |
deadline Varies |
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TMCF | PPG Foundation ScholarshipThurgood Marshall College Fund |
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award Up to $10,000 |
deadline March 27, 2023 |
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UNCF/CVS Health Foundation Health Care Careers ScholarshipUNCF, Inc |
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award $10,000 |
deadline April 29, 2023 |
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Milton Rose Science Fellows ScholarshipPfeiffer University |
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award Up to $8,000 |
deadline December 19, 2023 |
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Barry Goldwater ScholarshipIdaho State University |
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award Up to $7,000 |
deadline Varies |
Pharmacology Related Majors
- Biological and Biomedical Sciences
- Biochemistry
- Biomedical Sciences
- Marine Biology and Biological Oceanography
- Zoology/Animal Biology
- Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
- Neuroscience
- Physiology
- Wildlife Biology
- Exercise Physiology and Kinesiology
- Biotechnology
- Molecular Biology
- Genetics
- Anatomy
- Biology
- Neurobiology and Neurosciences
- Cell Biology and Anatomy
- Medical Microbiology and Bacteriology
- Human/Medical Genetics
- Microbiology