In this session, we will cover a topic that actually requires that calculus you took in high school: Pharmacokinetics. This thrilling discipline covers how drugs get into the body and how they know where to go to find their target due to their pharmaceutical chemistry. We will describe how drugs are transformed by our bodies, or if they are not, why, and where those metabolized products go to leave the body. We will cover how drug onset of action occurs and how this is different from the duration of effect and how both of these ideas are completely different from what may be the most important pharmacokinetic concept: drug half-life. A drug’s half-life determines how often it can be dosed before it becomes toxic. We will also share some scary stories that are predicated on the fact that genetics determine drug metabolism to a large degree and this explains why some drugs work for some people, but all drugs do not work for everyone, and some poor people are harmed by typical drug doses! I predict this session will make you want to get a PhD in pharmaceutical sciences or pharmacology. I think you will remember this session for the rest of your life. It is wild, wonderful, and highly memorable. Stay tuned!
The Joy of Drugs 