TOXICOLOGY INTRO

• Substances not normally found in the body can have adverse effects on a living organism

  Xenobiotics
• Exogenous agents that can have adverse effects on animal, plant, mineral, or gas origin

  Poisons
• Endogenous substances biologically synthesized in living cells and microorganisms

  Toxins
• Father of Modern Toxicology

  Mathieu Joseph Bonaventure Orfila
• established the dose-response concept

  Paracelsus
• anything can be poison, it’s the dose (amount) makes the poison
• This major discipline of toxicology is about Cellular, molecular, and biochemical effects of xenobiotics within the context of a dose–response relationship between the xenobiotic and its adverse effect(s)

  Mechanistic
• What are the three major disciplines in toxicology?

  Mechanistic, descriptive, regulatory
• This major discipline is related to risk assessment and Uses results from animal experiments and was used before molecular techniques

  Descriptive
• This major discipline Uses the combined data from mechanistic and descriptive to establish standards that define the level of exposure that will not pose a risk to public health or safety

  regulatory
• What are the three specialties involved in toxicology?

  forensic, clinical, and environmental
• This specialty Establishes and validates test methods used for legal situations

  Forensic toxicology
• This specialty Focuses on the relationship of xenobiotics, disease states, diagnostic testing and therapeutic interventions

  clinical toxicology
• This toxicology is involved in the Evaluation of environmental chemical pollutants and their impact on human health

  Environmental toxicology
• True or False

  The chemical must get to the effector site in a biologic system in order to produce a biologic effect

  true
• what are the three factors that influence toxicity?

  biologic, chemical, and genetic
• This is factor is responsible for

  • Absorption and translocation
  • Reserve functional capacity
  • Accumulation and storage
  • Tolerance


  Biologic factor
• This is the Ability to show less response to a specific

  dose of a chemical than was shown on a prior

  occasion from the same dose

  Tolerance
• True or False

  Tolerance is the same as resistance

  false
• The amount/quantity of a substance that can be toxic or effective

  DOSE
• Determined by the small amount needed to exert the expected effect of the substance

  Potency
• Substance A takes 1mg to produce an effect while substance B takes 2mg to take effect, which is more potent?

  Substance A
• Related to the harmfulness of a particular substance.

  Toxicity
• A single short-term exposure at a dose sufficient to cause immediate toxic effects

  Acute
• Repeated and frequent exposure for an extended period of time at doses

  Chronic
• What is the most common route of administration?

  oral route.
• Dose predicted to result in death in 50% of the population

  LD50 or lethal dose
• Dose predicted to be effective or have therapeutic benefit in 50% of the population

  ED50 or effective dose
• Dose predicted to produce a toxic response in 50% of the population

  TD50 or toxic dose
• Toxicity rating = Super Toxic

  what is the lethal dose?

  <5 mg/kg
• Toxicity rating = Extremely toxic

  5-50 mg/kg
• toxicity rating = Slightly toxic

  5-15 g/kg
• What specimen is used for drugs of abuse?

  Urine
• This specimen is used for therapeutic drug monitoring

  Blood
• This specimen is used for arsenic testing

  Hair and fingernails
• hair and fingernails are used for testing what?

  Arsenic
• This specimen is used for toxicity with trace metals or elements

  Serum
• What tube is used for serum in trace element testing?

  Specialized tube with royal blue stopper
• Type of tube used in lead determination

  tan-top tube
• What are the two screening tests for drug and toxin detection?

  Spot test and ECG