Course Description

This course is designed to present the pharmacological basis of therapeutics by discussion of the principles of drug action and the mechanism of action of representative agents. The course will focus on the chemistry, mechanism of action, and pharmacologic action of drugs on the autonomic and central nervous systems, the endocrine system, the cardiovascular system, immune system, and chemotherapy. A review of the relevant physiology and pathophysiology of each organ system will be presented, and the molecular basis for drug action will be presented in context of those systems.

Learning Objectives

• • • Identify the molecular mechanism of pharmacologic action of medications used in disorders of the autonomic and central nervous, endocrine, cardiovascular, and immune systems.
    • Identify molecular mechanisms of chemotherapy for microbial infections and cancer.
    • Apply this knowledge to explain how medications alter physiology and pathophysiology to treat disease.
    • Explain how medications cause toxicity by affecting off-target molecular and physiologic pathways.
    • Synthesize molecular and physiologic actions of medications to understand how medication classes that are used to treat diseases.
    • Evaluate case reports of patients who are treated with medications.

Prerequisites: Understanding of basic concepts in biology, chemistry, and biochemistry.

Textbook Information

Textbook Information

There is a required textbook for PHAR400 that can be purchased through FAES or on your own. The name of the book is: Principles of Pharmacology: The Pathophysiologic Basis of Drug Therapy, 4th ed.  The fee for the book is $ 95.99.  If you would like to purchase the book through FAES, please register for the section (PHAR 400-003) that includes the book. Upon receipt of payment and fulfillment of your book order, your book can be picked up at the FAES Bookstore in Building 10 on the main NIH campus.

If you are unable to pick up the book at the FAES bookstore and would like the book mailed to you, please contact FAES at (301) 496-7976 or registrar@faes.org. There is an $11 charge for mailing the book.